Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to also speak on this report of the Senate Standing Committee on Community Affairs. I share the views of my fellow senators. I thank Judith Adams for her contribution. She ensured that we followed through with this inquiry. It would be fair to say that Senator Adams, coming from Western Australia, knew only too well the issues facing her fellow Western Australian citizens in trying to access adequate medical services. From living in Tasmania, I do, too. Although we are geographically not as large as Western Australia, the landscape of Tasmania makes it difficult to access services at times. Most states and territories were represented on this committee. This is a national issue. This is one of those issues that we cannot afford to play the blame game with. It is a responsibility of state governments and the federal government to address this.

There were many instances of very emotional evidence given about the hardships suffered in cases in which PATS did not allow family members to travel. People talked about going to cities which they did not know. There were many issues relating to the lack of financial assistance through this scheme. As Senator Moore said, it is there to subsidise people. We have to address the concerns that were raised in this inquiry in relation to the money that is afforded for accommodation. We have to look at other options for accommodating people when they have to travel either interstate or intrastate, as they do in our great country. The concerning issue that confronted me and, I am sure, my fellow colleagues was that families are now making decisions about their health based on financial circumstances. That is something that we all need to be reminded of.

We need to ensure that these 16 recommendations, which are very good recommendations, are followed up on. I feel very strongly that we have to follow up on this inquiry. Too many reports gather dust in this place. I for one would like to be able to participate in continuing to monitor this scheme. I want to place on record my thanks to the secretariat for their hard work. If I dare say it, without a doubt, the secretariat of the Senate Standing Committee on Community Affairs work harder than most other secretariats. I also want to particularly thank those people who came before us and gave evidence and thank people for all the written submissions that we received. I commend the report to the chamber.