Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Senior Australians and Aged Care Services) | Hansard source

I thank Senator Griff for the question and for some notice of the general topic of the question. The government continues to invest in Australia's world-leading health system to ensure that Australians have access to high-quality health services at reasonable cost. The current situation with respect to bulk billing, for example, sees the bulk-billing rate at a record high of 83.5 per cent, which is 6½ per cent higher than when we came to government in 2013. GP bulk-billing records remained at record highs over the 2021 calendar year. Over that calendar year, the bulk-billing rate was 88.7 per cent—6.9 per cent higher than in 2012.

Senator Griff is correct: the purpose of the Medical Costs Finder website is to provide some visibility and transparency to support Australians in understanding what their medical costs might be so that they can make appropriate decisions with respect to where they might access those costs. I don't have with me any specific data in relation to the outcomes of those elements from the initial build—noting that the Medical Costs Finder website is still in its initial stages, as it's being developed, and that there are further stages to be considered. I understand that Minister Hunt has indicated a willingness to work with you, as we have done on previous sites that have provided visibility, to continue to improve the information that's to be made available to Australians across the board. But what we continue to do is to invest into Australia's world-leading health system, and whether that's into the MBS system for— (Time expired)