Jill Hall (Shortland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to join with the member for Hunter in calling on the government to fund the GP Access After Hours service that has been run through the Hunter Division of General Practice and through the Hunter Medicare Local. It is a fantastic service. I know that people within my electorate use it regularly. It operates out of Maitland hospital, John Hunter Hospital and Belmont hospital. It has been able to prevent a number of people being hospitalised over a period of time, and it has cut down on the cost of medical services being provided within the Hunter.

The loss of funding for this service, coupled with the government's GP tax, is absolutely diabolical. On Saturday, over 400 people joined with me and other local members to say no to the government's GP tax. I promised the people at that rally that I would deliver a strong message to the Abbott government. The people of the Hunter, the people of Shortland, do not want a GP tax. They know that it is going to increase the cost of health and they know that they need to be able to go to a doctor and have that doctor bulk-bill. When Tony Abbott was health minister, the bulk-billing rate in Shortland electorate was under 60 per cent. When we were in power, it exceeded 82 per cent. The government stands condemned for its attempt to introduce a GP tax.