Jo Briskey (Maribyrnong, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

There is no greater symbol of the Australian fair go than your green and gold Medicare card. It's a promise that, in Australia, when you get sick, you'll get help. Today I rise to outline the work of the Albanese Labor government, a government that hasn't just talked about the promise; we've put the investment behind it to make it a reality once again.

When we first took office in 2022, and when we were returned to government by the Australian people in 2025, we inherited a primary health system on life support. Let's be blunt about why. For six long years, the coalition chose to freeze Medicare rebates. They chose zero indexation. They chose zero support for GPs. The rising cost of doctor's visits wasn't an accident; it was a direct result of those opposite and the decision they made to starve Medicare. So it's been interesting to hear the contributions of those opposite and the manufactured outrage over Medicare in this motion, given their past performance.

On 1 January this year, this Labor government continued to turn the page. As the calendar turned to 2026, a suite of landmark Medicare initiatives moved from promise to reality. These weren't mere administrative tweaks at the margins; they represent a fundamental shift in the standard of care and a statement to the recommitment that we are making to a truly universal healthcare system, the core to who we are as Australians.

It started at the pharmacy counter, where we've slashed the PBS copayment for general patients to just $25, the lowest price that we've seen for essential medicines in over 20 years. For a family sitting around the kitchen table, balancing the mortgage and the grocery bills, this isn't just policy change; it's breathing space.

We didn't just stop at the chemist. We've ensured that when your child gets sick at 2 am—we've all been there—you are not left in the dark, due to the launch of 1800MEDICARE, a 24-hour direct helpline where you can get high-quality health advice that eases peace of mind and that is delivered right there at the end of the phone line.

Recognising the modern challenges our nation faces, we have opened a new digital front door to care. The Medicare Mental Health Check In is now live, providing immediate free access to health self-help tools and support. We are meeting Australians where they are—online, on their phones and in their moments of need—and removing the barriers to seeking help. This is the Labor way. We don't just protect the Medicare of the 1980s; we build the Medicare of the future.

Perhaps most importantly, we are restoring the heart of our healthcare system by bringing back universal bulk-billing. We were told the decline was terminal, but we've proven that when you value doctors, doctors can value their patients. By tripling the bulk-billing incentive and extending it just last November to every single Medicare card presentation, we have made it financially viable to be a bulk-billing doctor again.

We see the success in the heartbeat of my own community. Look at the Moonee Ponds Super Clinic. They are part of a wave of over 3,300 practices nationwide that are now fully bulk-billing. Look at the Gladstone Park Family Medical Centre. These are clinics staffed by professionals who have a deep and fundamental understanding of our community's needs. They know that, when a local family can access care without the stress of a gap fee, the whole community is healthier, more productive and more secure. Because of our 12½ per cent bonus for exclusively bulk-billing practices, clinics like these in my electorate are thriving. They are the frontline of a stronger Medicare. They are among the thousand practices that have recently indicated they are transitioning to 100 per cent bulk-billing—that's a thousand more doors open to families who were previously worried about the cost of a check-up.

Medicare was created by Labor and protected by Labor, and today it's being strengthened by Labor. We've invested $8.5 billion to reverse the decline that was seen under those opposite, and we've seen 6.5 million extra bulk-billed visits. These aren't just statistics. These are parents who can afford to get to the chemist. These are seniors who aren't afraid of the GP bill. The coalition froze Medicare; we have funded it. They broke the system; we are fixing it. This is what it looks like when a government puts the health of the nation first. I commend the motion.

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