New Medicare plan promises to reduce waiting times for GP visits: How it could affect you
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Do you find it difficult to get an appointment with a GP when you need one? Hopefully soon, you might not have to wait so long.
Victoria and New South Wales have joined forces to propose a new policy change that could reduce the waiting times to see a GP.
The new policy change, led by NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet and Victorian Premier Dan Andrews, proposes that pharmacists will be paid $20 per consultation to prescribe certain medications and/or deliver travel vaccinations, with all fees covered by the government. Customers would pay for their medication as usual.
This will hopefully slash the long appointment times people experience just to see a GP.
The national cabinet will discuss the proposal with the Strengthening Medicare Taskforce report to call for more dieticians, nurses, and physios to be integrated into GP clinics. The Taskforce is a representative group of primary health care key stakeholders. You can find their recommendations here.
This comes after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced his plans to overhaul Medicare, saying that the system his government had inherited was ‘struggling to keep up’. This causes many Australians to miss out on vital healthcare. More details about the PM’s plans can be read here.
Additionally, it seems like this new reform is a welcome change for some of our members here at the SDC. In our previous article, some of you mentioned the need for an ‘updated Medicare’ system.
‘My last visit to my doctor on my last pension day was paid for as normal, but my rebate still hasn’t gone back into my account from Medicare. I really need those $39.00 to pay for my medication [this week],’ @Nana Zorak wrote.
@mustang mentioned that policymakers should have done something sooner if they knew that the system wasn’t working.
‘What about people like myself who need to have operations, but can’t afford private? I am 69 years old, and desperately need my cataracts done,’ they added.
In a statement he made recently, Mr Perrottet said that states believed a trial allowing pharmacists to prescribe some medicines needed to be expanded and rolled out nationally.
He said that the country has had ‘nation-leading reforms when it comes to pharmacists’, ensuring that people had access to more medicine and vaccinations.
He added: ‘What does that mean? It means greater capacity in our GPs. We need a structure wherein every community in our country, you can get access to a GP where and when you need them. That means you have less presentations in the public health system.’
The premier went on to say that it was important to look at new ways of thinking and that the policymakers ‘don’t start with the dollar figures but the best policy possible’.
According to research conducted by the Pharmacy Guild of Australia, some 6.5 million appointments could be moved from GPs to pharmacists every year. This would mean a reduction in waiting times, as well as fewer people presenting at emergency departments and GP clinics.
Health Minister Mark Butler said there was ‘no higher priority for Labor in the health portfolio than strengthening Medicare and rebuilding general practice’. He claimed that after nine years of cuts and neglect to Medicare, it has ‘never been harder to see a doctor’.
Victorian Premier Dan Andrews called out the trial of an expanded role for pharmacists in prescribing medication during the state election.
He told voters that ‘when you wake up feeling sick or you run out of your prescription medication, having to wait to get an appointment with a busy local doctor can make a stressful situation worse’.
Under the pilot program, pharmacists would receive $20 per consultation, with all fees paid by the government, and patients paying no more than the current Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme co-payment for medicine that they may need.
According to the Victorian Government, this policy change will help Australians save money.
During the height of the pandemic, pharmacists were central in providing care to the community by delivering millions of doses of vaccines – all backed by grants from the Labor Government.
‘Community pharmacists have a wealth of knowledge and experience – it just makes sense to expand their role. It’ll ensure Victorians can get the timely care they need while saving families money and taking the pressure off GPs,’ Mr Andrews said.
The Victorian Premier also declared that there is a need to expand urgent care clinics.
‘Medicare should be fast, free and local, and we’re looking forward to discussing this issue with the Commonwealth and state and territory leaders at the National Cabinet on Friday,’ he explained.
The Victorian Government has stepped in to provide Priority Primary Care Centres, which are free clinics hosting salaried GPs that check on hundreds of patients each week. This reduced the pressure on emergency departments and gave patients access to crucial primary care.
‘We urgently need to pay GPs more, increase university places to get a pipeline of new doctors across the nation, attract GPs from overseas to Australia faster – and break down the barriers between primary care and our hospital system,’ the premier said.
What do you think about this plan? Have you ever had to wait too long for a GP appointment and how did it affect you? Let us know in the comments below. A big thank you also to everyone who commented on our previous articles!
Victoria and New South Wales have joined forces to propose a new policy change that could reduce the waiting times to see a GP.
The new policy change, led by NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet and Victorian Premier Dan Andrews, proposes that pharmacists will be paid $20 per consultation to prescribe certain medications and/or deliver travel vaccinations, with all fees covered by the government. Customers would pay for their medication as usual.
This will hopefully slash the long appointment times people experience just to see a GP.
The national cabinet will discuss the proposal with the Strengthening Medicare Taskforce report to call for more dieticians, nurses, and physios to be integrated into GP clinics. The Taskforce is a representative group of primary health care key stakeholders. You can find their recommendations here.
Pharmacists will receive $20 per consultation, with all fees covered by the government. Credit: Total Shape/Pexels
This comes after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced his plans to overhaul Medicare, saying that the system his government had inherited was ‘struggling to keep up’. This causes many Australians to miss out on vital healthcare. More details about the PM’s plans can be read here.
Additionally, it seems like this new reform is a welcome change for some of our members here at the SDC. In our previous article, some of you mentioned the need for an ‘updated Medicare’ system.
‘My last visit to my doctor on my last pension day was paid for as normal, but my rebate still hasn’t gone back into my account from Medicare. I really need those $39.00 to pay for my medication [this week],’ @Nana Zorak wrote.
@mustang mentioned that policymakers should have done something sooner if they knew that the system wasn’t working.
‘What about people like myself who need to have operations, but can’t afford private? I am 69 years old, and desperately need my cataracts done,’ they added.
In a statement he made recently, Mr Perrottet said that states believed a trial allowing pharmacists to prescribe some medicines needed to be expanded and rolled out nationally.
He said that the country has had ‘nation-leading reforms when it comes to pharmacists’, ensuring that people had access to more medicine and vaccinations.
He added: ‘What does that mean? It means greater capacity in our GPs. We need a structure wherein every community in our country, you can get access to a GP where and when you need them. That means you have less presentations in the public health system.’
The premier went on to say that it was important to look at new ways of thinking and that the policymakers ‘don’t start with the dollar figures but the best policy possible’.
The proposal will be tackled in the next national cabinet meeting. Credit: Pixabay/Pexels
According to research conducted by the Pharmacy Guild of Australia, some 6.5 million appointments could be moved from GPs to pharmacists every year. This would mean a reduction in waiting times, as well as fewer people presenting at emergency departments and GP clinics.
Health Minister Mark Butler said there was ‘no higher priority for Labor in the health portfolio than strengthening Medicare and rebuilding general practice’. He claimed that after nine years of cuts and neglect to Medicare, it has ‘never been harder to see a doctor’.
Victorian Premier Dan Andrews called out the trial of an expanded role for pharmacists in prescribing medication during the state election.
He told voters that ‘when you wake up feeling sick or you run out of your prescription medication, having to wait to get an appointment with a busy local doctor can make a stressful situation worse’.
Under the pilot program, pharmacists would receive $20 per consultation, with all fees paid by the government, and patients paying no more than the current Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme co-payment for medicine that they may need.
According to the Victorian Government, this policy change will help Australians save money.
During the height of the pandemic, pharmacists were central in providing care to the community by delivering millions of doses of vaccines – all backed by grants from the Labor Government.
‘Community pharmacists have a wealth of knowledge and experience – it just makes sense to expand their role. It’ll ensure Victorians can get the timely care they need while saving families money and taking the pressure off GPs,’ Mr Andrews said.
The Victorian Premier also declared that there is a need to expand urgent care clinics.
‘Medicare should be fast, free and local, and we’re looking forward to discussing this issue with the Commonwealth and state and territory leaders at the National Cabinet on Friday,’ he explained.
The Victorian Government has stepped in to provide Priority Primary Care Centres, which are free clinics hosting salaried GPs that check on hundreds of patients each week. This reduced the pressure on emergency departments and gave patients access to crucial primary care.
‘We urgently need to pay GPs more, increase university places to get a pipeline of new doctors across the nation, attract GPs from overseas to Australia faster – and break down the barriers between primary care and our hospital system,’ the premier said.
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. Where is this all going to end? My ‘end of life plan’ involves a long walk off a short pier. Easier, cheaper and eco-friendly. 
