Mark Butler (Hindmarsh, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Health and Aged Care) Share this | Hansard source

Poor Graham! As I was saying, about four in five visits are currently bulk-billed, which we think is too low. We'd like to see it higher. But, in 2014, a decade ago, when the cuts started, the Leader of the Opposition said this on Radio National: 'About four out of five services by GPs are performed for free, which is too high.' That explains why, of course, he then tried to impose a GP tax, and, when he couldn't do that, he imposed a six-year-long freeze to the Medicare rebate.

We're about protecting Medicare. We're about strengthening Medicare, and at the heart of that is our effort around bulk-billing. We've delivered, in this term of parliament, the three biggest increases to the Medicare rebate in 30 years—the first biggest, the second biggest and the third biggest. In three years we've increased the Medicare rebate by much more than they managed in nine long years. We've tripled the bulk-billing incentive. In Tasmania that means bulk-billing is up seven per cent—the biggest increase in the country—meaning more Tasmanians can afford to be going to the doctor—and they are. GP services are up in the last 12 months by four per cent in Tasmania—again, the biggest increase in the country. But, unlike for the Leader of the Opposition, that's not good enough for us. We know there's more we need to do.

The Leader of the Opposition has different priorities. He's going to prioritise long lunches on the taxpayer's dime and $600 billion for a nuclear power plant. That's why no-one trusts him with Medicare. (Time expired)

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