Carol Brown (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) | Hansard source

Yes, it was good news! I was proud to announce it alongside Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care, and member for Lyons, Rebecca White. This clinic means people will be able to get urgent care close to home seven days a week over extended hours, fully bulk-billed and without needing an appointment. That matters because when your child wakes up sick at night or when you cut your hand, twist an ankle or need care that cannot wait, the only option should not be a long trip to the Royal Hobart Hospital's emergency department. Around 32 per cent of presentations to that emergency department in 2024-25 were semi-urgent or non-urgent. This clinic will give families another choice and help the hospital focus on the most serious cases.

Medicare urgent care clinics are working. Labor promised 137 clinics across Australia, and all 137 are now open. Around three million Australians have already received care through them. They are treating children, helping people afterhours and taking pressure off hospital emergency departments. This is what strengthening Medicare looks like. It is also part of a much bigger health agenda: more bulk-billing, cheaper medicines, more doctors and nurses, and better care in communities where people live.

For families in Glenorchy, Moonah, Derwent Park and across the northern suburbs, this is practical help—closer care, faster care, free care. Labor listened to the community and Labor is delivering. The new Glenorchy Medicare urgent care clinic will make a difference, and I am proud to bring it to our community.