Emma McBride (Dobell, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you to the member for Cooper, the Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care, for bringing this critically important bill to the House. It has been said before, but it is worth repeating, organ and tissue donation saves lives. It restores health and improves the quality of life for thousands of Australians every year. It's about giving your neighbour or your friend or even someone you've never met another chance at life. But last year, of the 80,000 people who died in Australian hospitals, only around 1,400 people were in a position where organ donation could be considered. In about 90 per cent of those cases, requests to families for donation were made. While there was a national consent rate of 54 per cent from families, only around 450 people became organ donors in that year. Thanks to those donors, 1,200 people were able to receive a transplant, a life-changing and life-saving gift. However, as it currently stands, around 1,800 Australians sit on the waiting list for a transplant. What is clear is that we need to do more, but, unfortunately, our organ donation system is not working as it should. This bill will help amend some of those shortfalls.

Currently each state and territory has its own human tissues act, which have diverse limitations around the disclosure of information that may identify a donor or a recipient. As a result, the Australian Organ and Tissue Authority, otherwise known as the OTA, is limited in the ways it can deliver its programs, particularly in its community awareness activities. The bill will allow DonateLife agencies, grant recipients and authorised families to publish, disseminate or disclose information without breaking the law of any state or territory. Importantly, it will maintain the provisions requiring consent from family members when disclosing such information while clarifying and extending who is classified as an authorised family member.

Organ and tissue donation is one of the greatest gifts you can give. Unfortunately, it is uncommon to be in a position to be able to donate at the end of life. That's why we need to strengthen our donation scaffold, because simple maths will tell you more potential donors means more potential donations.

Before entering parliament, I did work as a specialist mental health pharmacist at Wyong Hospital on the Central Coast of New South Wales, a community that I have come to represent. I have shared many stories in the House about my time at Wyong Hospital and the lessons that that experience has taught me, but perhaps the most important lesson that came out of my time working in a hospital is that people in need are looking for a life raft. It's a sentiment that I know many of my colleagues here well understand but is even more true for the almost 2,000 Australians waiting for a transplant.

When it comes to health, our government has inherited a neglected system. It's never been harder to find a doctor, but we're changing that, and our actions are meeting our words. Our historic investments in Medicare will triple the bulk-billing incentive. It's the largest increase in the incentive in the 40-year history of Medicare. We're making it easier for all Australians to get the care they need by growing the health workforce and supporting all our trusted health professionals to do what they're trained to do. We're standing up Medicare urgent-care clinics, with more clinics in more places. This will free up our overstretched GPs, take the pressure off hospitals and improve access to affordable care. Fifty-eight Medicare urgent-care clinics will be fully resourced and operating this year, open for longer hours and with no out-of-pocket costs for patients. And we're investing in the Australian Digital Health Agency to upgrade and modernise My Health Record, making it easier for patients and providers to use and to support the secure, safe and efficient sharing of information.

This reform to organ donation is part of our broader strategy to repair and restore our healthcare system, provide universal health care to all Australians and bring our healthcare system into the 21st century. We are making sure that our healthcare system is one that Australians can rely on, that Australians can trust. That is why I'm so pleased to support this bill.

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