Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Government Business in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

It is always a challenge when you preprepare your question. The reforms introduce incentives based on the principle of ‘the more remote you go, the greater the reward’. That is what this government will deliver. Under the initiative, 500 communities around Australia will become newly eligible for rural incentive payments. This government is concentrating on rural Australia and is providing assistance under the health budget for that. Additional reforms ensure that more than 3,600 overseas trained doctors with restrictions on where they can practise will be able to discharge their obligations sooner if they work in remote communities. We are providing doctors for remote communities, unlike what the previous government did. Under the HECS reimbursement scheme, the rate of reimbursement of HECS payments will be adjusted to give more credit for the remoteness of the location. We are ensuring that we focus our health budget to support those in the rural community. And, of course, the National Rural and Remote Health Infrastructure Program, round 1, will start as well. (Time expired)