Ms Anna Burke (Chisholm, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Health and Ageing. How is the Gillard Labor government delivering a better health system with sustainable funding for hospitals and more access to GP services?

Nicola Roxon (Gellibrand, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Health and Ageing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Chisholm for her question. She will be particularly pleased with the good news that I can report to the House today, which is that we have this morning released the details of 240 general practices across the country, three of which are in her electorate of Chisholm, where investments are going to be made to allow general practices to expand, for extra doctors to be employed, for a new treatment room to be built, for a practice nurse and, maybe, some allied health professionals to be employed. This is unreservedly good news for general practices across the country that have been saying that they are ready to do more in meeting the needs of the community but need a little bit of extra assistance to be able to develop their facilities to do that.

The good news goes beyond just general practice, although that is the particular focus of our announcement today. The other good news is that last night this House passed the Federal Financial Relations Amendment (National Health and Hospitals Network) Bill 2010, the first step to being able to reform the funding of our health system into the future. I want to thank the Independents and the Greens, who supported this legislation in the House. It adds to a list of successes in the health area over the last fortnight in getting changes through this House that actually provide a legislative base for doing things better into the future. We are very proud of the fact that this will allow us to invest properly in our hospitals into the future.

People will well remember that when the Leader of the Opposition was the health minister he pulled $1 billion out of our hospitals. In the year 1996 the Commonwealth funded 45 per cent of hospital services and in 2007, when we came to government, it was down to 38 per cent. Never again will that situation occur if this legislation that was passed by the House last night is passed by the Senate when we return in the new year.

Let me provide a little bit more information to those members of the House who might be interested to know about the 240 clinics that are being supported by virtue of our announcement today. Members will be interested to know that 45 per cent of those grants are in regional parts of the country, because a number of these practices are the ones that are ready to expand but need some extra resources to do so. People might be interested to know that lots of electorates across the country have had one successful recipient. Many, in fact over 20, have had two. I think nearly 15 have had three.

But I would just like to highlight a couple of electorates that have been extremely lucky because there are four or five projects in the electorates that have been successful. The member for O’Connor will be pleased to know that there are four in his electorate. The member for Barker I suspect will be pleased to know that four practices in his electorate are being supported. The member for Leichhardt might be surprised to know that there are five in his electorate that are being supported and the member for Cowper, who I know has been supportive of his superclinic, will no doubt be pleased to know that five general practices are being supported in his area. That is not to mention the member for Denison, the member for Franklin and the member for Kingston, all of whom have had multiple successes. This is good news for general practice across the country but even more importantly it is good news for those patients who will see expanded services and be able to get to see a doctor or nurse more quickly when they need one.