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

The government acknowledges the member for Calare's deep interest in this matter as we do the member for Kennedy's. In the member for Calare's community, he faces a challenge which many of us do: the need to attract and retain more doctors to deliver the quality, affordable health care that communities need and people deserve. I recall an MPI the member moved on this matter in May, and, following his question to the Minister for Health and Aged Care last week, a meeting has been scheduled for the member for Calare and Minister Butler, and I look forward to joining them for that important discussion. The government is keen to continue our constructive engagement with the member for Calare; however we will not be supporting this motion to suspend standing orders.

Big challenges remain in getting enough doctors to communities which need them in the years ahead, and Minister Butler has repeatedly said that general practice has been his key focus under our strengthening Medicare agenda since we came to government. There are many initiatives working to support that, and I will go through just a few today: historic increases in the Medicare rebate and bulk-billing incentive deliberately designed to deliver the most support to rural and regional doctors; increased GP training through a college led training system and more Commonwealth supported places; $90 million to implement the recommendations of the Kruk review and make it easier to bring internationally trained doctors to Australia in a globally competitive market; and innovative models of care grants to support innovative team based approaches to primary care in rural settings.

We know these measures are beginning to work. The slide in bulk-billing has stopped, and rates are increasing, including in Calare, which is up to 81.8 per cent of consultations fully bulk-billed. GP training programs are fully subscribed for the first time in many years. GP morale is improving and more GPs are feeling valued in their specialisation and are importantly recommending it as a career to young doctors in training. This is from the RACGP's General practice: health of the nation report.

But we know there are also people living in regional and outer metropolitan areas who find it difficult to see a GP when they need one. The complexity of this challenge means we cannot equate morality with need, as has been common practice in the past, so our policy work is set out to fully understand these complexities and respond to them, in particular our distribution levers, GP incentives and scope-of-practice reviews. The government is considering each of the reviews and has committed to working with our key stakeholders in the response. Indeed, I was speaking last week with the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine and this morning with the incoming president—the new president—of the Royal Australian College of General Practice about them.

To the member for Kennedy, bulk-billing rates in Kennedy are up 4.1 per cent from November last year when the tripling of the bulk-billing incentive flowed—came into effect—to October this year. I thank you for the opportunity to visit in your community, including with your local GP. We are aware of the challenges facing the GP practice in Charters Towers and have ensured the Rural Workforce Agency and Primary Health Network are providing recruitment and business planning support.

I extend the same offer to the member for Calare and other members with a keen interest in this work. We, as a government, are working determinedly to grow doctor numbers and take affordable health care back to every region in the country and will continue to do so through the many policy initiatives that I have mentioned.

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