Shayne Neumann (Blair, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Veterans' Affairs and Defence Personnel) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The people of Blair are paying 42 per cent more to visit a GP since the coalition government came to power, with a 67 per cent increase in out-of-pocket expenses for specialists as well. One of the biggest changes this government made was the Distribution Priority Area classification system that came in on 1 July 2019. Doctors are telling me it's much harder to get overseas trained doctors and bonded doctor access to Medicare, which means poorer health outcomes for my area. I've been on this case now for a number of years and I've been pushing it, along with local GPs, and I want to pay tribute to the work they've done—people like Dr Cathryn Hester and Dr Magdy El Ashrey. Dr Hester is at Karana Downs, at Colleges Crossing Family Practice.

I was pleased to announce that a Labor government would make a difference here. If we get into government, an Albanese Labor government will make it easier for people across Ipswich, including in rural towns and the Karana Downs area, to see a GP. We will change the classification to make sure people can get access to GP services that are currently reserved for the bigger cities like Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. We will make sure this is the case. I want to thank the shadow minister for health; and my good friend the member for Oxley for his advocacy; as well as local GPs.

I've met with both the current minister and the former minister, and I've written to them. And guess what? Their correspondence said they wouldn't change this until we got poorer health outcomes in my area. It's not good enough. Labor will make a difference.