Australia's GPs have come up with a bold new plan they say will benefit patients. People under 35 would have greater access to free GP visits bulk-billing rates would be lifted and out-of-pocket costs slashed under the plan championed by the nation's doctors.
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00:00The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners has outlined several initiatives that they
00:08would like to see happen, saying that it would improve accessibility and affordability of
00:13GPs and ease hip pocket pressures for Australians, noting that this proposal is being put forward
00:19ahead of a federal election campaign that will largely be fought on cost of living measures.
00:25The College is calling for several initiatives, including one that would expand the eligibility
00:30of the bulk billing incentive, broadening it to all Australians under the age of 35.
00:36The bulk billing incentive is a payment that GPs receive if they bulk bill, if they directly
00:41bill Medicare, meaning that the patient doesn't have any out of pocket costs. Now, at the moment,
00:46that incentive only applies to Australians under the age of 16 and concession card holders, but
00:52the College wants that broadened out to all Australians under the age of 35, saying that
00:57Australians aged between 25 and 34 are the most likely group of people to either delay or skip
01:03seeing the GP because of the cost. The plan has lots of other initiatives as well. They want
01:08more federal funding to boost the number of GPs by about 1500 over five years, and they also want
01:15out of pocket costs for longer consults cut and a boost to the Medicare rebate for GP mental health
01:21items. The RAC GP President Michael Wright spoke at Parliament earlier this morning. Take a listen.
01:27Our plan will also lead to nearly half a billion dollars of health system savings
01:32from reduced demand on emergency departments and hospitals.
01:37For too long, Medicare rebates have been underfunded, and there was a Medicare freeze
01:41for nearly 10 years. And what that means is that the costs of providing care haven't kept pace with
01:47what the Medicare rebate has provided. And that's been it's been harder for GPs to bulk bill,
01:52and more patients are facing out of pocket costs. The Health Minister Mark Butler pointed to about
01:57six million additional bulk bill GP visits that had occurred between November 2023 and December
02:042024. But he did say he would like to do more when it comes to bulk billing. Take a listen to what he
02:09had to say. There's more I want to do. And your viewers, I think would be surprised if the Labor
02:15Party, which created Medicare and has fought for it so much over the last 40 years, would not be
02:21taking a strong Medicare policy to the next election. And bulk billing is obviously a critical
02:26part of that. Now, health will be a major focus of this upcoming federal election campaign, with
02:32Labor seeking to highlight its focus on Medicare and the coalition doing the same. The Shadow
02:38Health Minister Anne Ruston said the coalition had always invested heavily in Medicare and would
02:43continue to do so if it wins the next election.