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A re-elected Albanese Labor government has said it will make the single largest investment in Medicare since its creation 40 years ago, with $8.5 billion to deliver an additional 18 million bulk-billed general practitioner (GP) visits each year.
The additional funding will also fund hundreds of nursing scholarships and thousands more doctors in the largest GP training program ever, according to Labor.
Australian patients and families are expected to save hundreds of dollars a year in out-of-pocket costs, with patient savings of $859 million a year by 2030.
Labor says it will expand the bulk-billing incentive to all Australians and a 12.5 per cent “incentive payment” on top of Medicare rebates to practices bulk-billing every patient.
Labor says the changes will mean nine out of 10 GP visits will be bulk-billed by 2030, boosting the number of fully bulk-billed general practices to around 4,800 nationally – triple the current number.
Labor also says it will deliver more doctors and nurses, with 400 nursing scholarships and the largest GP training program in Australian history, funding the training of 2,000 new GP trainees a year by 2028.
“Labor built Medicare, we will protect it and improve it for all Australians,” prime minister Anthony Albanese said.
“I want every Australian to know they only need their Medicare card, not their credit card, to receive the healthcare they need.”
Australian Medical Association welcomes the announcement
The Australian Medical Association welcomed the federal funding commitment, which follows years of campaigning by the AMA on the need to urgently invest in Australia’s primary care system.
AMA President Dr Danielle McMullen said general practitioners are the cornerstone of Australia’s healthcare system and equitable access to affordable GP care is essential.
“This is the second significant package of funding for general practice from the government and follows a $5.7 billion investment in 2023 to support patients and address growing concerns over the viability of many general practices,” Dr McMullen said.
“The neglect of Medicare by successive governments means the patient rebate no longer bears any relationship to the actual cost of providing high quality services to patients.”
Dr McMullen said more work was still needed to address issues relating to the growing complexity of general practice care.
“We need a rethink of Medicare rebates to ensure today’s patients who have increasingly complex needs get the care they require,” Dr McMullen said.
She also welcomed funding to grow Australia’s GP training places to 2000 by 2028.
“The government announcement today is important. As we approach an election campaign, we look forward to hearing from the coalition which has yet to articulate its policies for improving access to general practice,” she said.
Opposition leader Peter Dutton said in response to the announcement the coalition would commit $9 billion extra funding to Medicare including a previous $500 million pledge for more mental health support.
RACGP mixed on the announcement
An ‘amazing’ investment for GP training, but a ‘mixed bag’ for general practices financially: that’s how Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) president Dr Michael Wright views the Labor election funding promise.
Dr Wright welcomed the bipartisan commitment to invest in Medicare, but warned a focus on bulk-billing rates will not suit all general practice business models.
While welcoming the commitments to boost support for training GPs, which is one of the college’s key election requests, Dr Wright also said GPs may face more pressure to bulk-bill and emphasised that an expansion of bulk-billing incentives does not oblige general practices to adopt them.
“GPs are still able to set their fees and the college will completely support that going forward,” he concluded.
What does this mean for patients?
Details of the exact difference the Medicare pledge could make to rebates were included in the official announcement (see table below).
They show a 62 per cent increase for a standard Level B consult in metro areas at a fully bulk-billed general practice, with rebates for non-concession card holding adults rising from $42.85 to $69.56.
The rebate for bulk-billed Level B consultations in remote areas will more than double to $86.91.
Meanwhile, Level C consultations will increase by 30 per cent in city areas and 59 per cent in the most remote districts, with the lower rise a cause of concern to Dr Wright of the RACGP.
“We have been asking for increased Medicare rebates, particularly targeting long consultations and mental health consultations, because we know that’s where the chronic disease and the complex care happen,” he concluded.