Mark Butler
Hindmarsh · Australian Labor Party · Australia
“But earlier today we were all in here voting on the latest instalment in the member for Lindsay's ongoing but thus far unsuccessful campaign to rebrand the Liberal Party.”
“I thank the member for Werriwa for her contribution and for her really strong support for everything we're doing to make Medicare stronger and make medicines cheaper. I thank all members for their contributions to the debate on this bill. As the member for Werriwa said, Medicare is the very best of Australia.”
“I thank the member for his question, which is a question I've answered before in this place since the budget. As I've said on a number of occasions publicly and in this chamber, the additional support that over-65s have received since about 2004 for their private health insurance premium is something we did revisit given the significant p…”
“But, under ours, they'll receive an increase of more than 20 per cent, or an additional $160 million in this year alone, which means more doctors, more nurses and better care in Tasmania.”
“Importantly, this bill provides stability so patients can continue to benefit from the outcomes of these programs and strengthened access to primary care.”
“That approach gives providers and the government greater certainty while preserving the flexibility needed to keep program settings up to date as health system needs evolve. Importantly, the bill does not change the underlying policy settings of existing programs.”
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“Darzalex is a first-line treatment for people who've just been diagnosed. Before it was listed in November, it cost patients $440,000 for a course of treatment. But, now, around 1,300 or 1,400 patients every single year will be receiving this life-changing treatment for just PBS prices. Next week, we'll list another treatment, the second in just six months after 12 years of nothing. Elrexfio will be available for patients whose myeloma has relapsed after several lines of other treatment. Instead of paying $5,000 for every script for this treatment, again, they'll pay no more than $25. I'm also pleased to say that we're very close to finalising a deal with state governments to deliver a CAR-T cell therapy, Carvykti, that was recommended to us a little while ago and has to be delivered through the state hospital system.”
“I say thank you to the member for Macquarie, firstly, for her support for all of the new services we've rolled out in her electorate—the new Medicare mental health centre, an endometriosis clinic, a second headspace and, of course, the urgent care clinic in Windsor that opened this year—but also for her question, because she knows that there are more than 20,000 Australians today battling myeloma and 2,500 new cases diagnosed every single year. The five-year survival rate for myeloma is just 60 per cent, with 1,200 Australians or more losing their battle with this bone marrow cancer every single year. Part of the reason why that survival rate is relatively low has been the lack of new treatments on the PBS—but that is changing. Last November, we listed the first new treatment for myeloma on the PBS for 12 years.”
“I say this: the Minister for Indigenous Australians, the Minister for Social Services, I and other members of the government are committed to working together to address what is a very serious public health challenge and a deep, deep shame and a stain on First Nations communities. The lack of access to high-quality, affordable food is something we should always strive to improve. I look forward to the meeting the Minister for Indigenous Australians is having with community members and probably the member himself over the coming day or two, and I'll certainly be happy to do anything I can to contribute to this effort.”
“We have been working very hard through Minister McCarthy in particular to improve food security in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, and that program—the Low-Cost Essentials Subsidy Scheme—is already subsidising the cost of dozens of essential items in grocery stores in remote communities so that First Nations Australians in those communities are paying the same price that Australians in metropolitan Australia pay, saving up to 50 per cent, with prices now comparable to city supermarkets in about 113 stores to date, and we're working to improve that. I know that's not a full answer to the member's question.”
“We know that prevalence is high. Morbidity and mortality are higher for First Nations Australians. We know that treatment of advanced diabetes takes too many First Nations Australians off country for dialysis treatment, which is why we're seeking to build renal services in remote communities, so people can receive that dialysis on country. But, really, the member raises the more important questions about how we prevent people going into diabetes in the first place.”
“While I strongly reject the characterisation that the member just made of a number of decisions, I do also recognise, and have for some years, his deep interest in this area and his involvement going back to his time as the minister for Aboriginal affairs in the Bjelke-Petersen government and the role that the mission market gardens program played back then. I've heard the member speak passionately about this question many, many times. I understand representatives of the community are here in parliament this week and will be meeting with Minister McCarthy tomorrow to talk more about issues of food security. The member raises what is probably the most pressing public health challenge the whole country has, which is the rise of type 2 diabetes. But we know that it is a particular challenge for First Nations communities.”
“Today there are 3,621 general practices bulk-billing all of their patients, and that number is increasing every single week.”
“But our decision to extend bulk-billing payments for the first time ever to every single Australian last year is the thing that's really making a big difference. Since 1 November—just five months ago—the number of general practices in Spence bulk-billing all of their patients all of the time has tripled. Today, two out of every three general practices are 100 per cent bulk-billing practices in the electorate of Spence. Indeed, before 1 November, only around 2,000 general practices in Australia out of more than 7,000 were 100 per cent bulk-billing. We expected to get that number up from 2,000 to 3,600 by 2028, on our way to a 90 per cent bulk-billing figure in 2030 that the Prime Minister committed to. I'm pleased to report that we have already achieved our 2028 target in March 2026.”
“Soon that longstanding headspace in Edinburgh's north, which has been supporting young people in the member's community for almost two decades, is going to be upgraded to a headspace plus, with more staff and more free services for young people. For a community like Adelaide's north, bulk-billing is especially important—the idea that people there can go to the doctor whenever they feel they need to, rather than just when they feel they can afford to. When we came to government four years ago, bulk-billing was in freefall because of a decade of cuts to Medicare, particularly the Medicare rebate freeze. After we tripled the bulk-billing incentive, since 2023 bulk-billing for pensioners and concession card holders started to turn around.”
“My friend and colleague the member for Spence is a terrific representative of Adelaide's northern suburbs. A lot of people do it tough in Adelaide's north, but it is an amazing community. It gave us Holden cars and Jimmy Barnes and so much else. Those opposite managed to shut down Holden, but not even that terrible government could shut down Barnesy, for which we're all very thankful. He's also been a relentless advocate for a stronger Medicare in Adelaide's north. The urgent care clinic in Elizabeth has seen almost 30,000 people already—all bulk-billed—taking pressure off the terrific Lyell McEwin Hospital. `Last month we opened a new headspace service in Gawler, as well as a new Gidget perinatal mental health centre in Elizabeth. Both opened just last month.”
“There's not a single reference to Medicare, not a single reference to bulk-billing, not a single reference to urgent care clinics and not a single reference to cheaper medicines, which just goes to show that it doesn't matter which flavour you pick from this potpourri, the tutti-frutti of right-wing parties that is available in Australia right now, you won't hear anything about a stronger Medicare.”
“I thought I'd have a look at the third right-wing party's policies about this after Senator Hanson said earlier today that there's a heap of policy for Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party, you just have to go to their website. So I did go to their website, I clicked on 'Health' on onenation.org.au, and there are—one, two, three—four lines in their health policy! To their credit, they mention improving regional healthcare services by paying the HECS and HELP debt of recent graduate doctors. I'm pretty sure we're doing that, Minister for Education.”
“Indeed, the member can attest to the high-quality care there because he was bitten by a white-tail spider quite recently. I know he was especially proud and especially delighted last week to open the Medicare urgent care clinic in Cairns North that we promised at the last election. There are now 134 Medicare urgent care clinics open after the Prime Minister opened the Coburg clinic in Melbourne over the weekend. Already, they've seen more than 2.7 million Australians, every single one of whom has been bulk-billed. But let's be clear, this is a Labor vision. This is a Labor program. The shadow Treasurer, now the opposition leader, a couple of years ago described it as 'wasteful spending'. Now, on his website, it says nothing about Medicare or health.”
“I know that the member for Leichhardt only got to Canberra this morning. He's been with his community over the last few days, helping them up in Cape York deal with the impacts of Cyclone Narelle. I also know as a player of basketball in the US, he saw firsthand the punishing effects of a healthcare system like America's—bills for hundreds of thousands of dollars to treat serious basketball injuries. That's one of the reasons why he has been such a strong supporter of our stronger Medicare plan. It's delivering for his community in Leichhardt. More than 60 per cent of general practices today are bulk-billing 100 per cent of their patients. Almost 40,000 people have already gone through the Cairns south urgent care clinic since it opened in 2023.”
“As the member for Melbourne knows, we've been busy over the last three or four years making those prices even more affordable. Since we were elected in 2022, Australia's pensioners and concession card holders have received about 90 million scripts completely free of charge as a direct result of the changes we made to the safety net. Australian pensioners' maximum script price will be locked in at $7.70 and frozen for the rest of the decade. For those many Australians who don't have the benefit of a concession card, general patients' PBS script prices are now no more than $25—the same price they were way back in 2004. These changes already have saved Australians more than $2.3 billion at the pharmacy counter, with more being saved every single day. It's good for their hip pocket but also incredibly good for their health.”
“Since we've been elected, we've listed more than 400 new medicines onto the PBS. And this month, just as an example, I'm delighted to say that we listed a new treatment called Ultomiris for a relatively rare condition, myasthenia gravis. This relatively rare condition impacts only about 3,000 Australians, but it can impact their ability to manage everyday tasks very severely, like walking or even chewing or breathing. This is the first new treatment for those patients on the PBS for 30 years. It's going to make a huge difference to their lives. But, without this listing today, those patients would have to pay $25,000 for every single script. From this month, instead of $25,000, they'll pay just $25. That is the beauty of the PBS—the world's best treatments here in Australia at affordable PBS prices.”
“Thank you to the member for Melbourne, who is such an amazing advocate for a stronger Medicare. I particularly want to thank her and the member for Maribyrnong for their tireless work in securing a long-term future for that inner Melbourne icon, cohealth, which we're working on very hard together. The member also knows how important a strong PBS and cheaper medicines are for her community. The PBS is one of the world's best medicine systems. For eight decades it has been delivering Australians access to the world's best medicines at affordable PBS prices. Today that is more important than ever, in a time of turbocharged discovery, where new medicines are coming onto the market at a huge, unprecedented pace every single month. These new treatments, using revolutionary technology, are highly effective, but they're also incredibly expensive.”
“That's the insult the shadow Treasurer makes to Australia's doctors, to Australia's nurses and to Australia's hardworking health professionals. That's the different approach from those opposite.”
“You've got to go back to the Wayback Machine, as I said to the new deputy leader of the Nationals. It's much like the Liberal Party election review, which—surprise, surprise—in 52 long, painful pages mentioned Medicare and health exactly not a single time. Apparently there was nothing to learn and no insights at all. There is someone over there who is always overflowing with insights, and that is the shadow Treasurer—the man who wants to privatise Medicare. I wondered why. He gave an explanation about why he dislikes the current Medicare arrangements just last month. At this dispatch box, the shadow Treasurer described our healthcare system as 'a system designed to keep people ill to feed the benefits of the unions'.”
“I can report that today that number is 3,581, up from 2,000 and just 19 short of our 2028 target, and it's increasing every single week. That's our plan. That's our approach. But the member asked me about alternative approaches. As I said last week, the Leader of the Opposition is a little hard to pin down here because he's been just so busy wiping the historical slate clean. I went back to his personal website, and, still, there is not a single report of the media statements he made supporting Peter Dutton's GP tax and supporting the Medicare freeze. Indeed, if you type into the search engine of angustaylor.gov 'Medicare' or 'health', all you get, of course, is no response. I'm obsessed. I have to admit I'm obsessed with trying to find some record. It's hard.”
“Thank you to the member for Lalor. She is such a powerful advocate for a stronger Medicare, in part because she's such a true believer in universal health care but also in part because she's seen what a difference this is making to her community. Already, more than 33,000 people have gone through the Werribee Medicare Urgent Care Clinic. Every single one of them was fully bulk-billed. Today, more than 80 per cent of general practices in the member's electorate are bulk-billing all of their patients all of the time. We're seeing more bulk-billing right across the country. Before our investments on 1 November took place, only about 2,000 general practices in Australia were 100 per cent bulk-billing. We expected that number to get to 3,600 by 2028 on our way to our target of 90 per cent bulk-billing by the end of the decade.”
“Larger Medicare payments now mean that women can access implants and contraceptive IUDs free of charge instead of paying up to $400, which is what they were doing before last year. This package is focused on providing women with more choice, with lower costs and with better care, and it is already making a huge difference, righting the wrongs of decades—frankly—in too many areas, and is delivering a stronger Medicare for Australia's women.”
“Last year, the government added the first new contraceptive pills, the first new menopause hormone treatments and the first new endometriosis medicines to the PBS for literally decades. Since then, almost 400,000 women have been able to access their menopause hormone treatments at affordable PBS prices instead of having to pay top dollar. One of those women, Anne, recently messaged me and told me that she was saving more than $600 a year because of that listing. More than 300,000 women are accessing their oral contraceptive pills at PBS prices. We didn't just modernise the PBS in this respect. We've added new MBS or Medicare entitlements as well. Almost 80,000 women just since July have accessed the new comprehensive menopause health assessment. Women are benefiting from higher rebates for complex gynaecological care.”
“Women consume about 60 per cent of the nation's health services, often not because they're sick but because they're women taking responsibility for their own and their family's reproductive health and reproductive planning or because they're going through menopause or perimenopause. The truth is that women have not been getting the support from our healthcare system for decades that they deserve and they need. This morning, I want to pay tribute to the Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care, who made a statement to update the House on our progress in this area and other areas relevant to her responsibilities in the women's portfolio, and I thank her for her tireless work in this area.”
“Thank you to the member for Chisholm. She is one of 69 women who sit in the government party room and one of 50 women who sit on this side of the House of Representatives, compared to five Liberal Party women who sit on that side of the House of Reps. There are twice as many women who sit on this side whose names start with A as there are Liberal Party women on that side of the House overall. And I can tell you that every single one of my female colleagues reminds me regularly that you cannot be serious about strengthening Medicare without strengthening women's health.”
“That's 500 more enrolments every year than we were seeing under the former government, and half of them are training outside of the big cities, in communities like the South Coast in New South Wales. That's delivering a stronger Medicare.”
“We're also cutting red tape and fees for overseas-trained doctors who want to come to Australia and practise here in this country—and why wouldn't you?—particularly from countries where we have high confidence in their training, like New Zealand, the UK and Ireland. All of this means there's been a huge increase in the number of newly registered doctors practising in Australia—up by 50 per cent on pre-COVID levels. But I've also been clear that I'd like to see more of these young doctors choose a career in general practice, because general practice is the backbone of strong health care, and that's why I'm especially pleased that we are seeing record numbers enrolling in general practice as a career. Last year was a record, but we broke that record this year, with 2,100 young doctors choosing to enrol in general practice.”
“For too long, it was simply the case that doctor numbers were not keeping pace with a population that is growing and is getting older. We've turned that around as well. The Minister for Education in particular has expanded medical school places, to train more young Australians in medicine. Cairns and Launceston now have end-to-end medical training, thanks to this government. We've delivered the first medical school in the Northern Territory, which is taking its first medical students, literally as we speak, this year. The education minister also approved the expansion of medical school places to nine other universities, starting this year, with more to come in 2028, as I understand it.”
“My thanks to the member for Gilmore and congratulations on the delivery of her promise to open a new Medicare urgent care clinic in Nowra. It opened last Thursday and it's the 132nd urgent care clinic that has been delivered by this government. The member for Gilmore also delivered on her promise to ramp up operations at the existing Batemans Bay urgent care clinic to manage the impact of some changes to the local hospital operations in that town. That's now operating 18 hours a day, from 6 am to midnight, every single day of the year. With more than half of her general practices now bulk-billing all of their patients all of the time, the member for Gilmore genuinely is delivering a stronger Medicare to the South Coast, and I thank her for that. But a stronger Medicare needs more doctors.”
“When he joined us at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital on Sunday, he said this PBS listing would mean thousands and thousands of Australians from now on won't have to go through that. They won't have to deal with the financial pressure in addition to the trauma of potentially not surviving your children's schooling years. This will benefit about 5,000 Australians every single year. It is the first listing of its kind anywhere in the world. These immunotherapies are life-changing and life-saving. Not only will it now mean that no-one pays $100,000, but they'll be paying cheaper scripts thanks to this government.”
“Then he went into hospital in his late 30s to discover he was riddled with tumours through a range of different organs. He could have had chemotherapy but with very little chance of survival. He could have had some inhibitors that are on the PBS and maybe would have survived for two years. But his clinician Professor Roberts-Thomson recommended Opdivo and Yervoy which has largely cured all of these tumours. He's seen his oldest child graduate high school and his other two children get into adolescence, but he had to pay $100,000 for that. His parents deferred their retirement. His nan lent him some money. His workmates did a crowdfunding campaign to get that money together.”
“But, I have to say, none of them are more exciting than the listing I announced on Sunday for whole-of-cancer eligibility for an immunotherapy called Opdivo and Yervoy. This has been saving thousands of lives here in Australia and hundreds of thousands across the world for several years now, and we've been struggling to get a listing that would allow clinicians to make that drug available to everyone with any type of cancer. This is going to be particularly important for those rarer cancers where it's very difficult to put together a clinical trials case for a specific listing. I joined a constituent of mine, Josh Galpin, in the western suburbs of Adelaide. He'd had a relatively minor melanoma. It had been treated. He thought he was all fine.”
“Thank you to the member for Lingiari. Like everyone on this side, I am so enormously proud of that great Labor legacy, the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, that was achieved by a Labor government decades and decades ago against the opposition of the Liberal Party at the time and against the opposition of groups like the then British Medical Association. But we stuck to the fight, and it's delivered one of the best medicine systems in the world. Since we came to government, we've added 400 new or amended listings to the PBS, terrific listings like reproductive health medicines, menopause treatments, cancer treatments and so many others. All of them are fantastic additions to the therapies available to Australian patients.”
“He's more than happy to make sure that everyone remembers what the Leader of the Opposition really thinks, even if he's trying to rewrite history.”
“I was directed to a machine called the Wayback Machine, which I thought was the Liberal Party policy unit but in fact is a tool that, very usefully, has preserved all of the Leader of the Opposition's greatest hits: his support for the GP tax from Peter Dutton, cheering Sussan Ley's Medicare freeze, arguing that a higher GST is 'good policy'—not sure whether that's still his view—and so much more. But I can also report to the House that that's not the only online tool that's preserved these greatest hits. The member for Mitchell's social media account—always willing to lend a hand—is also keeping the historical record alive. So, if you can't find your way to the Wayback Machine, just log onto 'Alex Hawke MP'.”
“I regret to say to the member and to the House that finding out about alternative health policies is a little harder, especially from the new Leader of the Opposition. The Prime Minister helpfully tabled the Liberal Party election review yesterday, and I can confirm that there is not a single mention of the word 'health' or 'Medicare' in that entire review—so there's not a clue there. Instead, I googled 'Angus Taylor health plan' and was directed to the Leader of the Opposition's website. I then discovered that all the historic material has mysteriously been wiped from that website. The most common result you get from the Leader of the Opposition's website now is 'page not found'. But I didn't give up.”
“I thank the member for Maribyrnong. As a qualified psychologist, she understands better than most the importance of stronger Medicare. Together we've been able to visit bulk-billing practices in her electorate at Gladstone Park and Moonee Ponds. She knows that in Victoria, I'm happy to report, the bulk-billing rate for pensioners and concession card holders is now 93½ per cent. For those Victorians who don't have a concession card, their bulk-billing rate has climbed by more than nine per cent in the last three months alone. Australians can now visit the website health.gov.au/bulk-billing to find a fully-bulk-billing practice near them. They just have to plug in their suburb or their postcode, and a local list will appear from among the 3,500 general practices that are now 100 per cent bulk-billing. That list is growing every single week.”
“He's not going to be bothered with freezing the Medicare rebate; he wants to tear the whole system down. This is what he's written. He wants to see 'the transfer of health financing shifted from government to individuals'. Put simply, every Australian would have an individual health account that they'd contribute to on a periodic basis from their income, and that savings account would be used to pay for healthcare services as required through their lifetime. It's hard to see how a bulk-billed urgent care clinic survives in the shadow Treasurer's world. But, still, the Leader of the Opposition thought that this man was the right man to steer the Liberal Party's alternative budget strategy—a bloke who wants to privatise Medicare; a bloke who wants to foist American-style healthcare on the Australian people.”
“It's just one example of the member for Whitlam's promise to deliver a stronger Medicare. But her question also implies that there has always been, as there has been, a fundamental difference between the two major parties when it comes to Medicare. The now leader of the opposition is no different in this respect from all of his predecessors. He supported Peter Dutton's GP tax. He cheered Sussan Ley when she extended the Medicare rebate freeze for four long years, and he said it should be extended to the whole healthcare system. Last term, when he was the shadow Treasurer, he described our urgent-care-clinic funding as wasteful spending. But not even the Leader of the Opposition has said the quiet bits out loud quite like the shadow Treasurer, a man who seems completely devoid of an inside voice.”
“Thank you to the member for Whitlam who brings a wealth of experience to this parliament, including her time leading one of Australia's biggest disability providers. She completely gets the importance of strong health and social care systems that are supported by government. Last week I was delighted to join her at the official opening of the Shellharbour Medicare urgent care clinic. That clinic was promised by the member for Whitlam, and the only reason we were able to open it was that we won the election, because the Leader of the Opposition at least was upfront in telling the people of Shellharbour that, if the Liberal Party won, there'd be no Shellharbour Medicare urgent care clinic. But it is there and it's already delivering high-quality urgent care completely free of charge.”
“He was a barracker for every single one of the cuts and pieces of neglect that the member for Forde talked about. When Peter Dutton tried to abolish bulk-billing altogether and make every single person pay to go to see the doctor, there was no stronger supporter than the member for Hume. He said they'd be doing Australians a favour, because then they'd pay much more attention to every single GP visit they went to.”
“I'm happy to report to the member for Forde that the number of practices that bulk-bill every single patient every single time they come into their practice has doubled in his electorate, which has one of 3,500 general practices in Australia who are now 100 per cent bulk-billing. We know on this side of the House just how important that is, but those on the other side never quite learn. This is the third Liberal leader to sit opposite this Prime Minister. Each of them have tried desperately to differentiate themselves from the failures of their predecessor. But there is one thing that has united every single Liberal leader who has sat in that chair: basic opposition to the principles of Medicare. This latest leader is no different.”
“We knew they were in freefall when we came to government in 2022, and the Treasurer's decision to triple the bulk-billing incentive in 2023 has meant that, already, the bulk-billing rate for pensioners and concession card holders has come right back over 90 per cent; it's over 91 per cent in the member's state of Queensland. We knew that bulk-billing was continuing to slide for those Australians in Middle Australia who did not have the benefit of a concession card—continuing to slide because of the multiyear freeze to the Medicare rebate put in place by the former Liberal government. Our investments on 1 November, and the record investment in bulk-billing, have been so important for Middle Australia.”
“I thank the member for Forde. I think he and I first worked on a campaign together back in 1993, in the electorate of Makin for our common friend Peter Duncan. That was yet another election when the Liberal Party was promising to abolish Medicare. He learned and I learned then just how critically important it is for Labor to maintain the rage always to deliver the fundamental principles of that universal health program. That's why he fought so hard for our Strengthening Medicare agenda at the last election—to drive up bulk-billing rates in his electorate of Forde.”
“It's a 21 per cent increase for working Australians in just three months, which means that the total bulk-billing rate in the Northern Territory has already almost reached 90 per cent. It's now 89½ per cent. I tell you, Mr Speaker, that shows the value the Territory gets for two amazing local MPs and from a government that's determined to strengthen Medicare.”
“Now, three-quarters of general practices in Solomon are 100 per cent bulk-billing because of the investment that we made last year. Indeed, right across the Territory, bulk-billing rates are skyrocketing, helping people see their doctor for free. The bulk-billing rate in the Territory for pensioners, concession card holders and kids is now over 97 per cent, the highest rate in the country. But the biggest increase, I'm pleased to say, has been for working-age Territorians who don't have the benefit of a concession card. I said yesterday that bulk-billing for those working Australians has increased by about eight per cent across Australia since November, but that increase is 21 per cent in the Territory.”
“This year, we've increased Commonwealth funding to Territory hospitals by 30 per cent, the biggest increase any jurisdiction has ever received in hospital funding. Indeed, Territory hospitals, as a result of the National Cabinet agreement, will receive $1 billion more than they would have received through an extension of the old Morrison agreement. We've opened eight Medicare urgent care clinics as well. Six are in remote communities, one is in Alice, one is in Palmerston and a ninth will soon open in Darwin because of a promise made by the member for Solomon at the last election. The member also asked me about bulk-billing rates in the Territory. I'm pleased to report that the number of general practices in Solomon that are now bulk-billing all of their patients all of the time has tripled since November.”
“Thanks to the member for Solomon. He and the member for Lingiari are amazing advocates for better health care for that incredible part of the country they represent. Their advocacy, I can tell you, has driven our record support for a stronger Medicare in the Top End. The member for Solomon, I can tell you, Mr Speaker, was a relentless supporter of Charles Darwin University's bid for the first-ever medical school in the Territory. I know he's delighted they're taking on students this month. Both members also pushed our government, finally, to address the historical underfunding of Territory hospitals that had seen the Territory receive less funding, proportionally, than any other jurisdiction for many, many years. We fixed that as well.”
“The government will always pursue reforms to ensure private health insurance delivers genuine value for money, greater transparency, and puts consumers right at the centre of healthcare decisions. I commend the bill to the House. Debate adjourned.”
“To address this issue, amendments to the Private Health Insurance Act 2007will require insurers to apply to the minister for approval of the premiums for new and existing products. In addition to requiring ministerial approval for proposed premium changes, insurers will have to apply if they open a new product, or they reduce the cover, a benefit or other term or condition of an existing product. Additional changes are being made to formalise and enhance existing practices also that occur under the annual premium round process. These include: These reforms are an important step in holding private health insurers to account and empowering consumers to make informed decisions about the costs of their health care.”