THE Abbott Government has ripped up its planned cuts to Medicare rebates in a major health backflip, giving the Newman Government a reprieve from a voter backlash in the final two weeks of the election campaign.
Federal Health Minister Sussan Ley yesterday cut short her holiday to declare the planned $20 cut to the Medicare rebate for short doctor visits was “off the table”.
The announcement, which followed several vows to press on with the changes in the preceding 24 hours, came after it became clear the powerful Senate crossbench would combine with Labor and the Greens to reverse the changes when the Parliament resumed in February.
It also followed public and private lobbying by the Queensland LNP in the lead-up to the campaign, with the party worried the issue would be as toxic as the Abbott Government’s decision to hike up the petrol tax just a fortnight before the Victorian state election was for the first-term Napthine Government.
The Newman Government has repeatedly distanced itself from the $20 cut to the Medicare rebate for short doctor visits and lobbying by the LNP.
Party insiders believe the petrol hike fed into the Liberals’ loss in Victoria, and were worried cranky patients would seek revenge at the Queensland ballot box too if rebates were cut a fortnight before polling day.
Doctors argued the now-defunct rebate cuts would have ripped $20 extra from patients and flooded hospital waiting rooms.
Ms Ley said she would now consult on a “Plan C” to introduce a GP fee for those who could afford it.
“People often think they send the Health Minister an email (and) she never reads it,” Ms Ley said.
“In fact, I’ve read an awful lot over the last fortnight and, as I’ve said, I’ve heard.”
However, Ms Ley insisted it remained critical that there should be reform to ensure the Medicare system was sustainable.
She committed to undertake a consultation on the ground with doctors and the community to come up with sensible options.
“I need to explain … that our Medicare system is growing at a rapid and unsustainable rate,” she said.
The decision axes the Government’s Budget-saving Plan B after the initial $7 GP fee was also ditched.
State Health Minister Lawrence Springborg said the Newman Government had always opposed the rebate changes.
“We have worked tirelessly to ensure that people understand our hospital emergency departments should be used for people in need of emergency care and that they don’t become de-facto GP clinics,” he said. “For that reason, today’s announcement by the Federal Government is welcomed by the LNP in Queensland.”
As consumer and medical groups welcomed the “victory for patients”, Opposition Leader Bill Shorten said the Government’s health policy was “in shambles”.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott said Medicare had to be sustainable and challenged critics to come up with an alternative.
Australian Medical Association president Brian Owler said no issue in recent memory had provoked such anger among doctors and patients. “The changes really had nothing to do with healthcare policy, had nothing to do with sustaining the healthcare system. It was all about saving money,” he said.
Meanwhile, plans to cut rebates by $5 from July and continue a freeze on Medicare rebate indexation remain, although they will be part of the consultation.
Source: Courier Mail