Michelle Landry (Capricornia, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

People in the Rockhampton area now have greater access to potentially lifesaving magnetic resonance imaging scans—or MRI scans—under the Medicare bulk-billing system.

I am pleased to advise the House that, after much lobbying, the Minister for Health has provided another Rockhampton radiology company with Medicare bulk-billing rights, to ensure affordable services are available to Central Queensland patients.

Central Queensland Radiology was one of only 10 MRI providers to be granted one of the new Medicare licences across the country. Rockhampton is a major health centre that treats patients from all over Central Queensland. Having a further Medicare provider there is a benefit to all the patients. It means local patients have better access to scans, resulting in a faster diagnosis and a more timely choice of treatments—which in some cases can help save lives.

MRI uses magnetic fields to generate images that help diagnose illness. MRI is especially effective on soft tissue, making it important for working with diseases such as some cancers and strokes. I congratulate Dr Geoff Clark and his team at Central Queensland Radiology and thank the Minister for Health, Peter Dutton, for acknowledging Rockhampton' s health needs.