David Feeney (Batman, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Justice) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Just this past weekend, hundreds of electors in my electorate of Batman expressed their anguish at the Abbott government's attack on Medicare and the unfair GP tax. I have received a host of letters expressing deep concern about how the ideological $7 GP tax will affect their health and the health of their families. Tony Abbott and the coalition do not understand, or they simply do not care, that this tax will hit the most vulnerable in our communities—and it will hit them hard. The sick, the poor and the elderly will be the ones to pay for Abbott's broken promises.

In my electorate, 87 per cent of all GP services are bulk-billed. This new tax will cost the residents of Batman $6,289,472. On top of that, Australian families will now be expected to pay more for medicine. Changes to the PBS will see the cost of medications rise to over $40 for most people, and concession card holders will now be forced to pay over $6.

This new tax not only attacks Australians' fundamental belief that the right to health services belongs to everyone; it will also have a negative impact on the health of the nation. Make no mistake: this tax will prevent people from visiting their GP and will merely pass the cost of health services along to our hospitals and the broader health system tomorrow. The communities I represent do not deserve to have to decide between going to the doctor to look after their health and meeting their weekly cost of living.