Jenny McAllister (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme) Share this | Hansard source

Senator Tyrrell, the last part of your question asks me to provide an insight into what will be in the budget. I don't mean to disappoint you too much, but that won't be something I can do today; that is something you will have to wait for in the budget.

The government understands that the burden of disease in Australia and the nature of that burden is changing. It was once the case that acute presentations were almost the exclusive focus of health investment. We now, as our demographics change and as our health needs change, understand that chronic diseases like diabetes have a far more significant impact on communities that we serve, and our government understands how important the primary health system is in responding to that. These factors absolutely underpinned our decision to invest as heavily as we have in Medicare and in the role of GPs in local communities.

As your question indicates, there is a relationship between access to primary health and the demands placed on our hospital system. It's why we've made the investments we have to lift bulk-billing. When we came to government, bulk-billing was in freefall under those opposite. We are making an $8½ billion investment to lift Medicare again, to get bulk-billing back on track. In your own home state, we are starting to see the fruits of that investment. We are starting to see greater numbers of bulk-billing clinics, more opportunities for people in your communities to see a doctor and urgent care clinics that allow people to see a doctor for free. These are significant investments that are designed to support Australians across the health conditions that confront them, particularly through investments in primary care.