Josh Dolega (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise today to speak to the Health Legislation Amendment (Improved Medicare Integrity and Other Measures) Bill 2025, and I note that this is not my first speech. When I think about Medicare, three names come to mind: Whitlam, Hawke and Albanese—three Labor legends who have championed universal health care. It was Labor who established Medicare in Australia over 40 years ago, and only Labor will protect and strengthen it.

The outcome of the 2025 election couldn't have been clearer. The Australian people sent a clear message: they will not stand for cuts to or degradation of our green and gold national icon. When we came to government in 2022, it had never been harder or more expensive to find a doctor. Bulk-billing was in freefall and, after a decade of cuts and neglect to Medicare, people were forgoing healthcare to make ends meet. This was not okay. That's why strengthening Medicare was a key focus of Labor's 2025 election campaign. When I was on the doors in Tassie's north-west during the campaign, I heard time and time again about the importance to Medicare and how access to high-quality and bulk-billed health care changes outcomes for everyone.

In Labor's first term of government, we delivered more doctors, more bulk-billing and cheaper medicines, and we opened 87 Medicare urgent care clinics across the country. This was just the start of generational investment in and improvements to our health system, and we're going further. On this side of the chamber, we stand for more bulk-billing, more doctors and more urgent care clinics. The Prime Minister has told Australians that this is Labor's year of delivery, and we aren't wasting any time. The Albanese Labor government is making the single largest investment in Medicare since its creation. We're investing $8½ billion to deliver more bulk-billed GP visits each year, hundreds of nursing scholarships and thousands more doctors. This means Australian families will save hundreds of dollars in out-of-pocket expenses. For the first time, our government is expanding bulk-billing incentives to all Australians, and we will create an additional new incentive payment for practices that bulk-bill every patient, meaning that nine out of 10 GP visits will be fully bulk-billed by 2030. Labor's record investment restores every dollar that the Australian Medical Association says was cut from Medicare through the Liberals' funding freeze.

I do know how important it is to see a GP regularly. It helps to catch issues early, before they worsen and before they lead to more intensive and more costly care. I've been really lucky to have had the care from the amazing doctors at the Glebe Hill Family Practice and Nurture on Hobart's Eastern Shore. To Dr Tim Jones and Dr Boris Tan: hi, I can't thank you and your amazing staff enough for your support and care over the years.

Our policy lifts up our entire nation and ensures that no-one is held back or left behind. We need more doctors. That's why we're investing $662 million in a workforce package that will expand the largest GP training program in Australia's history. By 2028, we will fund 2,000 new trainees every year. This complements the massive increase in overseas educated doctors joining the Australian health system, with an extra 17,000 registering in the last two years—more than at any time in the past decade. More GPs mean more Australians can get the care that they need closer to home. It means shorter wait times, better continuity of care and stronger support for families, especially in rural and regional communities like Tassie. That's why growing our GP workforce isn't just a health investment; it's a commitment to a healthier and fairer Australia.

We initially promised 50 Medicare urgent care clinics at the 2022 election. As I said before, we delivered 87. We're building on the historic investment in Medicare to expand the availability of free Medicare urgent care clinics in all states and territories. This means that four in five Australians will live within a 20-minute drive of a Medicare urgent care clinic. In Tasmania, we currently have five urgent care clinics: two in Hobart CBD, one in Bridgewater, one Launceston and another in Devonport. During the 2025 federal election campaign, the Albanese government promised another three for Tassie: one in Burnie, one in Sorell and one in Kingston. This will have a real impact on Tasmanians.

Nationally, more than 1½ million patients have walked through the door of a Medicare urgent care clinic and received the free urgent care they needed instead of waiting hours in a busy hospital emergency department. In Devonport, we have an urgent care clinic close to my electorate office. The community have embraced it with open arms. I drove past this clinic the other day. People were there, and they were lined up for over an hour before the clinic even opened, just wanting to see a doctor for free. People are even travelling from the neighbouring city of Burnie to be able to access the Medicare urgent care clinic. I know the community on the north-west coast are looking forward to the next clinic opening up in Burnie. Our Medicare urgent care clinics have filled the gap in our health system, and now patients all around the country, including parents and young children, don't have to spend hours in the hospital emergency department.

I have seen firsthand the benefits of urgent care clinics. On an amazing sunny Hobart afternoon, my partner and I decided to go for a bike ride along the beautiful Howrah Beach waterfront. Unfortunately, during this bike ride my partner fell off his bike. As the day progressed, it was clear that something wasn't right and that he needed to see a doctor. Without the Medicare urgent care clinic, we would have needed to go to the Royal Hobart Hospital. When we arrived at the Bathurst Street urgent care clinic, my partner was able to see a nurse and then a doctor, have the appropriate X-ray scans, get into a sling and get a script for pain meds. No credit card was needed, just our Medicare card.

It's not just Medicare that we are improving; we are making medicines even cheaper. The Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme is the envy of the world. Having already slashed the cost of medicines with the largest cut to the cost of medicine in the history of the PBS in 2023, we are now going even further. The government will make cheaper medicines even cheaper, with scripts to cost Australians no more than $25 under the PBS. This is more than a 20 per cent cut in the maximum cost of medicines, which will save Australians over $200 million each year. It's another key cost-of-living measure delivered by the Albanese government which will also put downward pressure on inflation. Australians have saved more than a billion dollars on the cost of their scripts thanks to the commitment to make medicines cheaper.

Our government is taking strong action to protect health of our young people. One of the pressing issues we face today is the rise in vaping among children and teenagers, and I'm sure senators are as concerned as I am. That's why we've introduced world-leading reforms to tackle vaping head on. These reforms are making a difference. According to the latest figures from the Cancer Council's Generation Vape study, the number of young people aged 14 to 17 who vape is now in decline. This is a clear sign that our policies are working and that we are moving in the right direction. But our commitments don't stop there. We are cracking down on the black market in tobacco. The illegal trade not only undermines public health but fuels criminal activity. To combat this, we are investing over $350 million to support law enforcement agencies, and these funds are helping them to take the fight directly to the criminals who profit from illegal tobacco. The Albanese Labor government is leading the charge in protecting young Australians from the dangers of vaping and illegal tobacco. Through groundbreaking reforms and substantial investments in law enforcement, we are seeing real progress. Together we are building a healthier, safer future for the next generation.

We are also delivering a major boost to our public health system with an additional $1.8 billion for public hospitals and health services next year. This one-year agreement is more than just a funding announcement; it's a commitment to ensuring Australians have access to better funded, more responsive public hospitals. It's a step forward in our long-term vision for health system reform. Let's not forget, it's a stark contribution to the previous Liberal government, which cut $50 billion from public hospitals. We're not just reversing those cuts; we're building something better.

And we're not stopping there. The Albanese government is working closely with states and territories to deliver a new five-year funding agreement that ensures our public hospitals are sustainable and ready to meet the needs of every Australian. The Albanese government is making Medicare even stronger. We are helping with cost-of-living pressures and ensuring that every Australian gets the best health care that they absolutely deserve. I know Tasmanians are behind this. I support the bill and I encourage senators to do the same.