Luke Gosling (Solomon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Labor supports the Veterans’ Entitlements Amendment Bill 2018. The government, as we heard from previous speakers, has a duty to support our servicemen and women whilst in uniform and then when they leave the service and, of course, their families. We support any move to make this support more compassionate and reasonable. If there are overpayments of a bereavement payment, the recovery process should be as sympathetic and compassionate as possible and that is the intent of this bill.

I will now speak specifically in support of Labor's amendment to the bill. Our amendment is bringing attention to an area where veterans are not being treated with respect and sympathy or with compassion. What is happening is veterans are losing access to vital health services. The fact is that the Abbott-Turnbull-Morrison government's continued attacks on Medicare have now started to affect veterans and their families. We understand that this government do not value Medicare as we do. They have a track record of seeking to undermine it. It could be argued that some opposite actually want to destroy it, and let the market rip.

Labor established Medicare. We built it, we maintained it and we will continue to protect it because we know how important it is. We value it. The Department of Veterans' Affairs fee schedule, known as the Repatriation Medical Fee Schedule, is linked to the Medicare Benefits Schedule and MBS rebates and, as a consequence of the ongoing Medicare freeze, as we heard from previous speakers, the DVA fee schedule has remained unchanged since 2014.

The DVA rebate no longer covers the cost of medical treatment and, because veterans cannot be charged a gap payment, some medical and allied health professionals are refusing to treat DVA clients. This is having a serious impact. I know of medical doctors who no longer take DVA clients. I know of many veterans who have been directly affected. Today in the House, the member for Sturt reflected on today's date and the shocking attacks on the US on September 11, 2001. As the shadow defence minister did, I want to acknowledge all Australians who have served in Afghanistan. It continues to be a difficult environment in which to assist that nation to move forward. Even today, we still have members of our ADF there in uniform assisting.

I remember 15 years ago, just two years after those dreadful attacks on September 11, when I was working in security roles in Kandahar, which had been the previous headquarters of the Taliban. I was working alongside the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan and the US military. We were ensuring that the loya jirga elections for the constitutional convention, a very important step for Afghanistan moving forward, were held in a safe manner. When we talk about freedom, the work of not only members of our Defence Force but others who have served us with the Federal Police and with humanitarian organisations and done other security work has been incredibly important for helping that nation to secure freedom.

During that time we were being actively targeted by the Taliban, who had melted back into the community, including through car bomb and grenade attacks. So I understand a little bit about the effect that working in those sorts of environments can have on our people. I understand from my service, both in and out of uniform, in Timor-Leste the sorts of difficult situations that Australians have confronted, confront and will continue to confront, whether they are capacity building, ensuring security as members of ADF, or working as first responders or in other difficult roles, including responding with humanitarian relief to our brothers and sisters in times of crisis and difficult circumstances.

Over those 15 years I've seen many friends—in uniform and then out of uniform after their service—self-medicating. This has happened whilst I've also seen medical and health services withdrawn. It's difficult to reconcile this with the rhetoric of those opposite—the flag waving and the pins on the lapels, which I notice hardly any of the frontbench opposite decided to continue with, having been given that badge of patriotism. It's difficult to see them hiding behind the service of others to try to say that they've got credibility here. I acknowledge the work that the Department of Veterans' Affairs does. I acknowledge the work that veterans' affairs ministers have done. But you can't say that you're doing everything you can. You just can't, because there are veterans out there hurting. There are doctors who are no longer seeing DVA clients, and they're doing that for a reason. It's hard to see people who have served this country suffering. It's hard to see a government that's not doing what it can to alleviate that suffering by improving the opportunities that our current and former serving people have to get the care that they need. It's simple!

The Australian Medical Association says that almost 30 per cent of specialists are no longer committed to treating veterans. Only 44 per cent of specialists said that they will continue to see veterans if the freeze continues, with the remainder considering other ways to charge veterans. I'll repeat that: they are considering other ways to charge veterans. What this means is veterans are now starting to suffer from reduced access to medical services. That must be tough for those opposite who profess to want to have the best medical support for our people, or who have served themselves and profess to want their comrades in arms to have the best access to services possible. I don't just know this from my own observations over more than 15 years; I know this is the case because I listen to the veterans in my electorate, in Darwin and Palmerston. We're a strong defence city with a large veteran community.

Earlier this year I held a veterans forum in my electorate, where the shadow veterans' affairs minister, the member for Kingston, and I heard firsthand accounts of the concerns of many veterans and the difficulties they face in the transition to civilian life. The member for Kingston addressed that gathering and took note of the particular issues faced by veterans and their families in the Top End. We heard of the different levels of service for white card holders in different parts of the country. Veterans move around, Defence members move around and their families move around, but what doesn't move around, and what doesn't get lifted from them, is the cumulative effect of their service. They reflected to us those different levels of service as they've moved around the country. We were told by one veteran that, while he had received good access to services in Sydney, it was much more difficult to access counselling and psychological services when he moved to Darwin.

We heard at the forum that gold card services are increasingly being told by medical practitioners that their books are full, and they are being turned away. Clearly those opposite agree that that is unacceptable. There is a clear need to improve access for veterans to mental health services and to professionals who have an understanding of the particular concerns of ex-service men and women. We must make sure that everything is done to enable those professionals who have that experience base to assist our serving and ex-serving people.

I am acutely aware of the human cost of the effects of the Medicare freeze on veterans not only in my electorate but also across the country. I've seen it across the country. I've seen it overseas. I've seen our brothers and sisters who have served this country on the run, not able to access the support that they need when they need it. I'm the first to applaud the non-liability mental health initiative. I'm not going on some partisan rant here. We need to fix this so that the people who have served our country have the best possible service that they can have.

The Prime Ministerial Advisory Council on Veterans' Mental Health has said:

It would appear there is a limited, but perhaps increasing, number of medical specialists turning our veterans away once they become aware they are DVA clients. The Council understands the concern regarding accepting DVA clients stems from the fact that MBS fees have been frozen for many years.

I thought it helpful to put in a couple of these quotes. Those opposite, while they might not believe me, or agree with me, or think that my lived experience in seeing people who have served our country struggling and hearing their firsthand accounts about how they used to be able to see a certain health professional but then that health professional was no longer accepting DVA clients—if they don't accept that testimony—may well listen to others. The Veterans and Veterans Counselling Service National Advisory Committee has said:

The remuneration gap between seeing veterans versus private patients from the general community or Defence members is now so significant that clinical providers are prioritising other clients over DVA referrals. In some cases, providers are refusing to accept clients with DVA white or gold cards because of the poor remuneration offered.

As I said, I know doctors. I've talked to them and I've pleaded with some of them to continue to take DVA clients. It's a matter of life and death at times. It's a very important issue for our country, but, despite repeated attempts to raise this issue, the fee schedule continues to be out of step with what providers charge and it's resulting in veterans being turned away from services.

From where I stand, I think that Australians are right not to trust the Abbott-Turnbull-Morrison government with Medicare, and veterans can't trust the government to take care of their health needs until this issue is dealt with. I urge the government to take action on this issue and ensure veterans are not disadvantaged by their DVA healthcare cards and are able to access the services that they need. I know and other service people, such as first responders, know that those who have been in a difficult situation need the best possible health care that our country can give them. That's what they deserve. For DVA clients there is a way that the government can help, so do it.

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