Anne Ruston SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care
2:10 pm
My question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Health, Senator Gallagher. The Albanese government's decision to expand the distribution priority area classifications to include suburbs of capital cities means that towns like Mildura are now competing with the suburbs of Melbourne for overseas doctors. The only bulk-billing medical practice in Mildura has had to close because doctors can now move back to the city and have chosen to do so, leaving 15,000 patients wondering how they will receive adequate medical care in Mildura and the Sunraysia area. Will the minister apologise to the Mildura community for effectively cutting their health services?
Katy Gallagher ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service
2:11 pm
I welcome the opportunity to talk about the important role that primary health care plays across Australia's health system. As we know—and again this is one of the things that we inherited from the last government—primary health care and the pressure on GPs has never been worse than it was on us coming into government.
Sue Lines President
Minister, please resume your seat. Senator Ruston, on a point of order?
Anne Ruston SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care
Yes, a point of order on relevance. I was actually specific in my question around the distribution priority areas, and I would ask you to draw the minister's attention to the matter that I was asking the question wrong.
Anne Ruston SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care
Just on the point of your ruling on the point of order, I wasn't talking about primary health care; I was talking about distribution priority areas.
Katy Gallagher ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service
The issue of access to doctors is directly relevant to the 24 seconds that I had in giving my answer. I can assure Australians that we will be doing absolutely everything we can to make access to primary health care more affordable, increase access and take the pressure off GPs as they are currently experiencing it. The issues of bulk billing are serious. If you cannot get access to high-quality primary care, creates problems downstream in healthcare system. I don't accept the proposition that the shadow minister for health put at the end of the question, which was: 'Will we apologise?' We won't apologise for investing more in primary health care by having our Medicare taskforce—
Anne Ruston SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care
I rise on a point of order again. President, could I draw your attention once again to the fact that the question is specifically and only about distribution priority area changes. The minister is talking about absolutely everything else apart from addressing the specific question that I have asked her and the specific topic that I have asked her about.
Sue Lines President
Senator Ruston, as you are aware, I cannot direct the content of the answer, and I do believe the minister continues to be relevant.
Katy Gallagher ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service
I am not fully briefed on the issues in Mildura, which is the area I think you raised in your first question. I'm happy to come back to the Senate if there is any further information that I can provide, but I will stand by the commitment we took to the election—which was supported by the Australian community—which was to strengthen Medicare with almost a billion dollars of investment, to have our urgent care clinics, to have $750 million in the Strengthening Medicare Fund and $220 million going direct to GPs to make sure that they can do the work we need them to do.
Anne Ruston SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care
2:15 pm
Specifically, Minister, your government's decision to expand the DPA classification for international doctors and bonded medical graduates has meant that a doctor who had planned to move to Huonville in Tasmania has now decided to stay in Hobart. Will you apologise to that community for effectively cutting their health services, and maybe you could explain to us what the DPA is in your answer?
Unidentified interjection - Hansard doesn't record who said this
Hon. Senators:
Honourable senators interjecting—
Sue Lines President
Order! Senator Watt and Senator Hume, interjections across—
Honourable senators interjecting—
Order! Senator McGrath, Senator Watt. Senator McGrath, I note you just accused Senator Watt of being disorderly. I wish you would take your own advice. Minister, please continue.
Katy Gallagher ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service
2:16 pm
All I'd add to the previous answer I've given is that Labor is about getting more doctors—providing more doctors to more communities so they can see more patients more cheaply. That is what we are trying to do. After nine years of neglect under the previous government undermining Medicare every single opportunity they could—
Unidentified interjection - Hansard doesn't record who said this
Hon. Senators:
Honourable senators interjecting—
Katy Gallagher ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service
We are about making Medicare more accessible to more people and supporting the work of general practice, so I think the slant that the shadow minister is putting on it is unfair. Our commitments are about getting more doctors into primary care, and when we've got them into primary care, supporting them with the work that they do.
Anne Ruston SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care
Am I getting a point of order or the second supplementary?
Sue Lines President
Sorry. I couldn't hear you because Senator Duniam is busy interjecting to Senator Watt across the chamber. Senator Duniam, you have your own manager on her feet.
Jonathon Duniam Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Environment, Fisheries and Forestry
My apologies.
Honourable senators interjecting—
Sue Lines President
Good question, Senator Scarr. Order! Let's clear the slate and I'm calling you, Senator Ruston, for your second supplementary.
Anne Ruston SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care
2:18 pm
Can the minister please explain what advice formed the basis of your government's decision to expand the DPA classification so that it now includes suburbs of capital cities? And what consideration was given to the impact on regional, rural and remote communities this policy is meant to support, particularly given the Rural Doctors Association of Australia has said your government's changes could cost the lives of rural and remote patients?
Katy Gallagher ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service
I think what the shadow minister is arguing is that we don't provide additional incentives for more doctors to go to more places. We are not trying to remove—The policy is about getting more doctors and incentivising—
Anne Ruston SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care
In the interests of assisting the minister, that was not what I was saying—
Anne Ruston SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care
I would ask you to ask the minister not to verbal me.
Katy Gallagher ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service
I think the shadow minister is criticising us for extending an incentives program to attract doctors to areas where there are workforce shortages. There are workforce shortages in suburbs. There are workforce shortages in Canberra.
Honourable senators interjecting—
I was health minister here for eight years. We had a massive GP shortage. There are shortages in towns.
Honourable senators interjecting—
Sue Lines President
Order! Senator Hughes, Senator Watt and Senator Ruston, I want the minister to finish her answer.
Honourable senators interjecting—
Katy Gallagher ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service
I have. We obviously have a different opinion about it but we have deliberately not changed the regional incentive payments that doctors receive for working in remote Australia so that we don't detract from there, but we do acknowledge there are shortages elsewhere. (Time expired)