Increasing out-of-pocket costs for GPs and specialists

TERRI BUTLER MP: Well today we've seen official figures showing that out-of-pocket costs for people to go and see a GP or a specialist have continued to rise. And it's a trend that’s only going to get worse unfortunately, because Malcolm Turnbull hasn't lifted any part of his Medicare freeze. There's still a freeze on GPs, there's still a freeze on specialists, and there’s still a freeze on Allied Health Professionals. We're going to continue to see out-of-pocket costs going up and up, for people to go and see a doctor. It's not good enough. In Australia there are about 960,000 people who don't go and see a doctor because of the cost, and there are more than 1.6 million people who don't go and see a specialist, because of the cost. These are terrible health outcomes for Australians. My electorate - Griffith - has the highest GP out-of-pocket costs in the whole state, and we’re the fourth highest for specialist costs as well. It's not good enough. You know, when I stood in the by-election here, when I was first elected, the Liberals had a plan for a GP tax. We defeated that plan but they've done it by stealth through this freeze on the MBS rebates, which has seen GP's left in a position where they have to continue to put the costs up and up and up. This is not good enough for Australians. Health costs keep going up under Malcolm Turnbull’s government. The MBS freeze needs to be lifted. It's not good enough for people to be paying almost $40 in out-of-pocket costs in my electorate to go to a GP. In some electorates in this country, it's up to an average of $47 and $99 for a specialist. This is too much. In Australia we have universal health care. We have universal health care that Australians have paid for through our tax system for a very long time. Australians expect to be able to get the medical care that they need when they need it, without having to take a massive hit to their hip pocket. I also wanted to say something about the Coalition agreement. We still haven't seen Malcolm Turnbull being willing to show us what's in the secret Coalition agreement between the Liberals and Nationals. There could be anything in that agreement. All we know about it is that it is what keeps Malcolm Turnbull and the Liberals in power. Bridget McKenzie was out this morning refusing to reveal what's in the coalition agreement. Australians deserve to see what deals have been done between the Nationals and the Liberals to enable Mr Turnbull to be in government.

 

JOURNALIST: So what do you say to claims that there are bulk-billing options out there?

 

TERRI BUTLER MP: Well they are really hard to find. Anyone who lives around my area knows that you have to look incredibly hard for bulk-billing options. They're not convenient for people. But why should people have to constantly be searching for bulk-billing options when in fact we have universal health care in this country? The fact is, out-of-pocket costs have gone up and up and up under this government. Since they were elected in late 2013, GP costs are up, specialist costs are up. Those are out-of-pocket costs. It's just not good enough to say “Oh well, you can go to a bulk-billing GP”. It's incredibly hard to find a bulk-billing GP. Anyone who lives around here or anyone who lives anywhere in Australia will tell you how hard it is to find a bulk-billing GP. We all know it ourselves, so this excuse that's been given is only an excuse. What needs to happen is that Malcolm Turnbull needs to lift his Medicare rebate freeze so that he stops putting pressure on doctors to keep increasing out-of-pocket costs.

 

JOURNALIST: Do you think the cost of out-of-pocket expenses is stopping people from seeking medical treatment?

 

TERRI BUTLER MP: Absolutely. So the data that have been released indicate that around 960,000 Australians don't go to a GP when they need to because of the out-of-pocket costs, and there's more than a million Australians – it’s up around 1.68 million – who don't go to the specialist because of the cost.

 

But just to get back to Primary Care; the idea that 960,000 Australians are not seeking medical attention when they need it, is a horrifying one. That’s people who don't get diagnosed as early as possible, that’s people who end up going to work sick and getting sicker and infecting other people. That's people who are worried about the cost of going to a doctor and so don't see one. We’ve got to do something about this as a nation. It's up to Malcolm Turnbull. It's very clear what needs to happen; lift the freeze on the MBS rebates. At the moment the MBS freeze will not be lifted until 2020. That's not good enough. It's putting upward pressure on out-of-pocket costs for going to the GP. Mr Turnbull should lift the MBS freeze. It hasn't been lifted at all. It's still there for GPs, for specialists, for Allied Health. The MBS rebate freeze needs to be lifted.

 

JOURNALIST: Do you think there should be a cap for doctors or GPs so that it can stop? Or will costs just keep going up?

TERRI BUTLER MP: Well, the thing about doctors is of course, their business is really determined by the rate of the MBS rebate. And while there is a freeze on that rebate, of course there is upward pressure on costs. Of course there is upward pressure on out-of-pocket costs. And the people who are bearing the brunt of the MBS rebate freeze - that Malcolm Turnbull has imposed - are consumers, are patients, are people. That needs to change.

 

JOURNALIST: Does private health insurance have anything to do with it do you think?

TERRI BUTLER MP: We know that private health insurance costs have gone up and up and up under this government. They continue to go up much higher than the rate of CPI. In fact, this year, the rate of the private health insurance premiums’ rise was about double the cost of living rise. Now this has been a real problem since Malcolm Turnbull came into office and since this Liberal government was elected in 2013. This is a government that promised to make health care affordable for Australians, but when you're seeing private health insurance premiums going up at twice the level of CPI, and when you’re seeing out-of-pocket costs for GP visits at around $40 a visit, then Malcolm Turnbull just can’t claim to have made health care affordable for Australians. If anything, Malcolm Turnbull has not made health care affordable for Australians. It's heading in the wrong direction and this trend is only going to get worse if the MBS rebate freeze isn't lifted.