OUR HEALTH SYSTEM REQUIRES A FULL MEDICAL

And in more detail...

Healthy living is about having a secure roof over your head and a job that satisfies your needs. It’s about living in an environment with clean air and water. It’s about many things, including your physical health. Indeed, having good health is vital to enjoying a high quality of life. If you don’t have good health, the rest is just noise.

Medicare, that precious institution that has served the physical health needs of more than a generation of Australians, has long since ceased to be the shining example of government social policy it once was. Right up to the 2025 Election, the numbers of med school graduates taking up general practice had dropped dramatically, there weren’t enough doctors servicing the needs of rural and regional Australia, nurses were leaving the system in droves, healthcare fund memberships were continuing to fall with spiralling monthly payments and a perceived lack of value, public hospital emergency rooms were full of people seeking non-emergency treatment, ambulances were “ramping,” being used as hospital overflow facilities, Indigenous health outcomes, particularly for children, were appalling, and the rates of suicide and eating disorders amongst our teens were booming. And these were just a few of the symptoms of a healthcare system reaching breaking point.

The Albanese government has promised an $8 billion boost to the Medicare budget following a review of Medicare conducted in 2023-24. However, this review didn’t go far enough, given the sprawling extent of this critical government service, one that commands a sizeable portion of the annual federal budget. The Good Party believes that it’s time to conduct a full Royal Commission into Medicare. Only by subjecting it to such scrutiny can we, the Australian public, be assured that the allocated resources are being distributed to the best effect. 

Australia’s population is ageing, putting increased pressure on our health system and services. A Royal Commission would generate fresh ideas and strategies to address the challenges our communities, both urban and regional, face.

Australia’s population is ageing, putting increased pressure on our health system and services. A Royal Commission would produce the fresh ideas and strategies required to address the challenges our communities, both urban and regional, face

Women's health

Women are built biologically differently from men, with a range of organs men don’t possess. And it’s because of these biological differences that women have health issues and requirements that men never experience. 

Currently, if you’re between the ages of 50 and 75, you’re eligible for a free mammogram every two years. However, many medical experts are advising that screening for breast cancer should begin at age 40.

Also, the free mammogram screening program is managed by the Cancer Council through its 500 established clinics and a fleet of mobile breast screening vehicles. However, millions of women require mammograms annually, and the charity’s limited resources often result in lengthy wait times.

Women living in rural and remote areas are not well-served by either, with the long wait times for bookings. 

In addition, the mammogram is not an infallible test; it doesn’t pick up all breast cancers, and the medical consensus is that regular testing should be augmented with a breast ultrasound for a more certain result. With breast cancer being the second largest cause of cancer death in Australian women (after lung cancer), we believe urgent changes to the breast screening program are required.

The Good Party thinks it's outrageous that mammograms and breast ultrasounds don't attract the full Medicare rebate. This has to change. And the screening must also be expanded to the pool of test providers in the private sector. This would significantly reduce wait times for women living outside urban centres.

Lowering the screening age to 40 and including breast ultrasounds in the program will catch far more cancers early, prevent deaths, and provide women with better certainty.

It's clear to us at the Good Party that if Medicare had been engineered by women from the outset, rather than men, these tests would have been more broadly based and attracted the full rebate from the get-go. (See also our policies for Women)

Increasing GP numbers has to be a key objective

The Good Party is pleased to see that the Federal Government has adopted our policy to waive significant portions of HECS for Medical Practitioners (GPs and nurse practitioners) who choose to remain in regional and remote areas.

While the government has allocated funding for the training of more General Practitioners, additional inducements, such as HECS waivers, should be included to make general practice an attractive career path for medical students. (See our First Degree is Free policy — you might have no HECS to repay).

Reintroducing the "House Call"

The triple pressures of cost, time, and availability have led to the demise of the once-common and welcomed doctor’s house call. Licensing nurse practitioners to make house calls would reduce the workload on the dwindling number of GPS and hospital ERS. Young mothers with sick children would especially appreciate a House Call, as would older senior citizens who are housebound because their mobility isn’t what it used to be.

Getting healthcare to the homeless

A further vital use for nurse practitioners and the House Call concept would be to apply it to the more than 8000 people who sleep rough in our communities every night. It’s reasonable to assume that many homeless people suffer from health problems that are either ignored or undiagnosed. A wealthy country like ours should consider every Australian’s health needs. Vital charitable institutions, such as the Salvos, Wayside Chapel, and the Australian Red Cross, which are in regular contact with our homeless population, could be funded to manage a “House Call for the Homeless” scheme.

More than 8000 people who sleep rough in our communities every night. It’s reasonable to assume that many homeless people suffer from health problems that are either ignored or undiagnosed. A wealthy country like ours should consider every Australian’s health needs

A broader role for Pharmacists

During the COVID pandemic, pharmacists proved to policymakers that they are more than capable of filling a vital role in Australia’s healthcare system. They are trusted and underutilised healthcare professionals, often with close relationships within their communities. While not clinicians in the traditional sense, pharmacists can diagnose a wide range of ailments and prescribe medicines for them when necessary. And pharmacies are everywhere family doctors aren’t, especially in rural and regional areas. Queensland and New South Wales are trialling a broader role for pharmacists. Assuming the trials are successful, the scheme should roll out nationally.

Keeping Telehealth on the air

Maintaining Telehealth services is another Good Party policy initiative taken up by the federal government. During the COVID-19 pandemic, it played an essential role, utilised by people in rural and regional areas where GPs are scarce, by older Australians who are less mobile than they used to be, and also by people with disabilities for whom a trip to the doctor can be challenging. A Good Party policy, we’re delighted that the government has announced the allocation of funds to continue this vital service.

Towns and centres in rural and regional Australia are desperate for a local GP. Many shop for a doctor overseas, offering all kinds of inducements to come and set up a practice or take over a practice from a retiring physician

Healthcare for First Nations People

Indigenous Australians have shorter lifespans than non-Indigenous Australians. On average, Aboriginal males live 71.6 years, 8.6 years less than their non-Aboriginal peers, and women live 75.6 years, 7.8 years less[2]. Poor access to healthcare is a large part of the reason why.

The child mortality rate of Indigenous Australians also continues to be stubbornly high, with Aboriginal children dying at twice the rate of other Australians[3].

These facts are a national shame, and the Good Party will engage with influential Aboriginal Aunties and Uncles to develop strategies to address them.

Aboriginal children also face some specific healthcare issues. For example, they are 8.5 times more likely than non-indigenous Australians to suffer from ear infections, fluid build-up and perforated eardrums. These problems can be easily treated; however, if left untreated, they can lead to permanent hearing loss. In the meantime, these children can and do suffer from various learning difficulties, which can lead to numerous disadvantages later in life.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander kids are also highly susceptible to the common bacterial infection called “strep throat”, which, if left untreated, can become rheumatic heart disease (RHD). All too often, this can require open-heart surgery to repair or replace damaged heart valves.

The Good Party would address these health issues plaguing Aboriginal kids by ensuring that specially trained health professionals are federally funded to visit Indigenous schools and settlements and provide treatment regularly. 

Aboriginal children also face some specific healthcare issues. For example, they are 8.5 times more likely than non-indigenous Australians to suffer from ear infections, fluid build-up and perforated eardrums. These problems can be easily treated; however, if left untreated, they can lead to permanent hearing loss. And in the meantime, these children can and do suffer from various learning difficulties that lead to all kinds of disadvantages later in life

Addressing the mental health of our teenagers, First Nations People, and veterans

According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, suicide is the leading cause of death among Australians aged 15-24.

Suicide rates among indigenous Australians are double that of non-indigenous Australians. Our defence force veterans are killing themselves in alarming numbers. Hospitalisation rates for girls self-harming are also rising.

These are terrible facts, and there is clearly a need for a substantive nationwide mental health program. While the federal government has increased funding for mental health generally through Medicare rebates, there’s clearly an urgent need for specific programs to tackle the growing mental health challenges.

More pay and better conditions for nurses

Anyone who has spent time in a hospital knows the vital role nurses play. They are tireless, dedicated and significantly underpaid. During the pandemic, they were our heroes. However, unfortunately, they are also underpaid and overworked, leading to a significant exodus from the profession. While nurses have received pay increases in some states, ongoing pay disputes persist in others. The Good Party supports nurses’ demands for better wages and conditions.

[1] Medical Journal of Australia (MJA), April 13 2020

[2] https://www.creativespirits.info/aboriginalculture/health/aboriginal-life-expectancy

[3] Australian Government “Closing the Gap Report 2020”