Andrew Broad (Mallee, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Unlike the opposition we are not here to play politics but to talk about issues that matter to people. I want to bring to the attention of the Australian Parliament the issue of continuous glucose monitoring. There are type 1 diabetic children in my electorate whose families have to pay subsidies to the tune of $5,000 a year, if they can afford it, because the Australian government is not paying for continuous glucose monitoring. If these children, particularly those who are under 18, can have access to this technology it helps them to monitor their blood glucose levels so that they can then monitor their insulin.

Currently the program costs $900 for the monitor and $75 every five days for the pads that have to go on the children. The federal government should use its buying power to try to bring down the cost of this technology, and we should have a look at how we can subsidise it. If we invest in this technology it will help children to manage their blood glucose levels better and it will translate to their having fewer presentations at hospitals with the complications of diabetes. This will cost us only about $25 million a year. This is money well spent. These are the things that the federal government is concentrating on and talking about, because the health of our children is something we really care about and it is something we should be doing something about. The $25 million would be well-spent.