What does the Coalition victory mean for general practice?

RACGP President Dr Harry Nespolon has congratulated the Coalition on its victory.
 
‘We look forward to continuing to work with the Minister for Health, once reaffirmed or announced, to deliver the best care possible to Australians,’ he said.
 
Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt made a number of key promises in April’s Federal Budget and during the campaign.
 
newsGP sums up their likely effects and how they have been received.
 
Chronic disease
A new $448.5 million chronic disease funding model is aimed at Australians aged over 70 with chronic conditions, using voluntary enrolment.
 
RACGP response
While supportive in principle, the RACGP has called for the funding to be rolled out more broadly. The funding does not currently appear to be sufficient to ensure the full benefits of a patient enrolment model.
 
Rural health
More than $62 million is designed to bring in the National Rural Generalist Pathway.
 
RACGP response
The college supports the rural generalist push and will launch its own rural generalist component next year.
 
Aged care
The Government announced in the budget that the Aged Care Access Initiative, worth an estimated $25 million, would be retained.
 
Older patients will be able to consult GPs via phone, email or text message in a telehealth model.
 
RACGP response
The 2019 Federal Election statement called on an incoming government to modernise medicine by allowing patients to access GP care through telehealth measures, such as videoconference, phone and email.
 
The RACGP supports the decision to retain the Aged Care Access Initiative, which came after ongoing advocacy by the college.
 
Medicare
The Government pledged to lift the Medicare rebate freeze on all remaining GP services before the end of the year, at a cost of $187 million.
 
RACGP response
The RACGP supports the early indexation of GP items, but notes that around $1 billion has been removed from general practice over the course of the freeze.
 
Practice Incentives Program
The Government promised more than $200 million over five years for the Practice Incentive Program Quality Incentive (PIP-QI).
 
RACGP response
The RACGP supports the PIP-QI, but has expressed concerns around the requirement to send de-identified data to Primary Health Networks.
 
Mental health
Almost $230 million over seven years has been set aside to improve mental health services in the community.
 
In addition, the Government announced $5 million for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander suicide prevention and $5.5 million for communities affected by natural disasters. It also said it would considerably expand headspace mental health facilities.
 
RACGP response
The college has pointed out that mental health is the most common health issue managed by GPs and said there was a missed opportunity to fund the most efficient part of the health system.
 
What else can we expect from a returned Coalition Government?
During its last term, the Government approved Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) listing for every medication recommended by the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC). This is expected to continue.

election funding healthcare