Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Minister for Health) Share this | Hansard source

What was bulk-billing for GPs under Labor? Under Labor it was 82.2 per cent. What was the last set of bulk-billing figures for us in the last half year?—85.4 per cent. The trajectory for bulk-billing, which is a measure over time of a trend, is up 3.2 per cent. In other words, bulk-billing has increased dramatically under us compared to what it was. So funding is up, and we also see that bulk-billing figures are up. If you put those two together, you have the strongest and most rock-solid support for Medicare that there has ever been. Let me repeat: they introduced the freeze and we are the ones who are dealing with it now in our discussions with the AMA, with the RACGP and the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine.

Let me deal now with Labor's record and what we are doing in health. Labor's record is very clear: Labor hates private health insurance. Let me repeat that: Labor hates private health insurance and wants to decimate it. How do we know this? Here is what the former health minister, the then member for Gellibrand, said going into the election: 'Labor made it crystal clear that we are committed to retaining all of the existing private health insurance rebates.' Here is what the member for Sydney—who introduced the freeze, by the way—said after they left government: 'How did I pay for it? I paid for it by targeting private health insurance.' Targeting private health insurance! It is the language of somebody who hates private health insurance and who resents that system.

Opposition members interjecting—

It was not my language—targeting private health insurance. What we have also heard from the member for Ballarat on health funding is: 'The opposition would be kidding itself'—and this was when she was in opposition—'if it did not recognise there were challenges in the budget and that savings need to be found. There is no area that is going to be exempt.'—

Mr Champion interjecting—

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