Tony Zappia (Makin, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Can I begin by acknowledging the valedictory speech we have just heard from the member for McPherson and paying my respects to her for her contribution to the workings of this parliament, for the work she has personally performed in the course of her membership of this place and also for her work in representing the people of her electorate and the people of Australia. I certainly concur with her remarks towards the end of her speech about the importance of education. I also wish her well in the years ahead.

I welcome the opportunity to speak on the National Health Amendment (Continence Aids Payment Scheme) Bill 2010, and I say that because this is a matter that I raised some time ago with the Minister for Health and Ageing on behalf of one of my constituents in the electorate of Makin. I am pleased to see that the minister has responded with this bill because what I raised with the minister is exactly what this bill now provides, and that is the opportunity for someone who is provided with financial assistance for purchasing continence aids products to do so at their choice with the supplier they wish to deal with.

The intent of this legislation is consistent with other health initiatives of the Rudd government which also provide financial support to enable people to manage their own health conditions. For example, for a child with autism, the government provides up to $12,000 for a child up to the age of seven years, with up to $6,000 of those funds accessible in any one financial year to assist with autism intervention and support. Similarly, payments of around $1,200 a year to cover the costs of day-to-day GP care and additional services are made available for people who suffer from diabetes. In fact, the Rudd government has committed $436 million to provide personalised care for diabetics, with payments of around $10,800 a year also being made available to GPs who become responsible for managing their care, including by developing a personalised care plan; by helping to organise access to the additional services they need, such as care from a dietitian or physiotherapist, as set out in their personal care plan; and by being paid in part on the basis of their performance in keeping their patients healthy and out of hospital. Again, the payment of continence aids funds directly to the patient is consistent with that theme.

In summary, this bill will allow for the introduction of the Continence Aids Payment Scheme and the replacement of the existing Continence Aids Assistance Scheme, which provides financial assistance with the cost of continence aids. This bill will allow a Continence Aids Payment Scheme—or CAPS as it is often referred to—to be formulated by the Minister for Health and Ageing through a legislative instrument. It will allow payments to be made directly to eligible persons under the CAPS, it will ensure an adequate process is in place for the transfer of clients from the Continence Aids Assistance Scheme to the new CAPS and it will confer power on the Secretary of the Department of Health and Ageing and on the CEO of Medicare Australia to request information in relation to the provision of payments under the scheme.

The existing scheme provides a subsidy for eligible recipients of up to $489.95 per year on continence products purchased through a sole provider. This sole provider is in turn paid directly by the Commonwealth. Expenses above $489.95 are then borne by the user. Under the new scheme, clients will now have a choice between receiving the full payments in July or, alternatively, receiving two payments of half the amount, one in July and the other in January each year. Medicare Australia will make the payments directly into the client’s bank account.

The CAPS is not a reimbursement scheme but a funding support scheme. It is intended that these new measures will come into effect from 1 July 2010. The payment will remain at $489.95 for the 2011-12 financial year and then it will be adjusted annually in accordance with CPI increases. The scheme currently assists more than 50,000 people. I am very much aware that, in addition to those 50,000 people, there are others in nursing homes or under other aged-care packages that will also access continence aids in this country.

The definition of what constitutes incontinence and how eligibility for the support package is determined will remain the same as that for the current scheme. The new scheme will mean suppliers will compete in an open and competitive market, and that will only be good for consumers because it will ensure that prices are competitive. I was approached by a constituent in my own electorate on this issue because the products were being made available by other suppliers in the broader community at a better price than they could be purchased under the previous arrangement and, therefore, consumers were not necessarily getting the best value for the amount of dollars allocated by the government to assist them with these products.

This week—that is, between 21 and 27 June—is World Continence Week, so it is timely that this bill is being discussed in this place today. Incontinence is a universal issue but not one that attracts much public attention and yet it affects so many families. Around four million Australians of all ages are affected by incontinence. They and their families are severely affected. I am sure that all of us in this place know of someone who is affected by incontinence and many of us may have family members whom we have to assist with this problem.

It is not a problem that is talked about widely throughout the community and yet it is a very real problem. In many cases, with the right treatment, the condition can be remedied. In other cases it simply cannot. For those who need the use of continence aids, those aids enable them to get on with their life and those aids certainly make life for their family members and carers much easier.

I also note that between 1 and 7 August this year will be national Continence Awareness Week in Australia. I hope that, as a result of the educational and promotional activities of that week, incontinence may become one of those topics that the community is better prepared to speak about, because it is only by the community at large talking about it more openly that we as a community can in turn respond with the best possible support available for both the people suffering from incontinence and their family members.

Many of the people who suffer from incontinence will clearly be entitled to financial assistance provided under this bill. The changes encompassed in this bill will be welcomed by all of those people eligible for financial assistance under this scheme because, as I said earlier, it will ensure more value, more choice and less expense if they were to normally exceed the $489.95 allowance. The fact that they have choice, I am sure, not only will mean that they will be able to shop around and get the best value for their dollars but also, as I also said earlier, will mean that, because there is a competitive market for the products, the price of the very products themselves can be expected to start to come down. People who need continence aids frequently have other medical conditions as well. If they are able to make any savings at all through the purchase of these aids, I am sure that those savings will be put to very good use to assist them with the purchase of other things in life that they will need as a result of the medical conditions that they inevitably suffer from in addition to incontinence.

This is a commonsense measure that has been implemented by the government. It is again consistent with the Rudd government’s message that health is of paramount importance. Health has become a priority for this government and, to date, the government has reflected that priority by the commitments that have already been made to the nation in health funding. I note that the government has already increased health funding by 50 per cent to $64 billion over the forthcoming agreement with the states. That is a 50 per cent increase to the health and hospital funding agreement with the states. In contrast to that, the previous government cut $1 billion from the agreement.

In addition to that increase, what this government has done is clearly identify where the priorities lie with respect to ensuring that the nation has a much improved health system and has, step-by-step, methodically worked through supporting all of those areas, beginning with committing additional funding to reduce elective surgy waiting lists around the country, providing additional funds for training of our nurses and doctors around the country, providing funding for GP superclinics around the country, providing funding to close the life expectancy gap for Indigenous people in Australia and providing funding to help with what we call low real interest rate loans for those people who are providing residential aged care. These are simply some of the steps that the government has already taken.

I note that in the last budget, announced only weeks ago, there was an additional $2.2 billion committed to providing health services for Australian people. I particularly note that, of that $2.2 billion, $355 million was provided for additional GP superclinics around the country, $417 million was provided to enhance after hours services for people in Australia, $523 million was provided to train our nurses and $467 million was provided for individual electronic health record systems to be established. I particularly note that $2.2 billion because the opposition leader has made it absolutely clear that, if they are elected, they will not proceed with the funding for the GP superclinics and not proceed with the funding for an electronic health record system for Australia, which I think is shameful because the electronic health system in particular is something that will enhance the ability of this country to provide better health services for people wherever they are. I am surprised that they would oppose electronic health funding because they suggested that it ought to be paid for by the federal government and implemented by the federal government when they were in government. I say to them: it is certainly something that surprises me. They should think again because, if they are serious about improving health services to the people of Australia, that is certainly one improvement that is not only long overdue but also needed if we are to provide good health services to people around Australia.

As I said in my opening comments about this bill, this is a matter I support. I have personally taken it up with the minister on a previous occasion and I commend the minister for looking at the issue and coming back with this legislation, which gives choice to the recipients of the funding. I believe, in providing that choice, it will be a very welcome measure. I commend the bill to the House.

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