The Australian Government is delivering additional access to urgent health care in Launceston with more funding to the Launceston Medicare Urgent Care Clinic to extend its opening hours.
The government opened the Launceston Medicare Urgent Care Clinic in July 2023, and since then the clinic has treated 26,300 patients, averaging around 47 each day. This makes the Launceston Medicare Urgent Care Clinic one of the busiest in Australia.
The Launceston Medicare Urgent Care Clinic is open seven days a week, and will now have new extended hours (9am to 8pm) from 1 July 2025.
No appointment is needed, patients can walk in and all services are bulk billed, with no out-of-pocket costs.
The clinic's highly trained doctors and nurses are equipped to treat a range of conditions and injuries that need urgent attention but aren't life threatening, such as a cut, a high temperature, a viral infection or a sprained ankle.
The clinic is helping to ease pressure on the busy Launceston General Hospital, where more than half of presentations were for semi- or non-urgent conditions in 2022-23. It is also providing important cost-of-living relief for patients seeking urgent, but not life-threatening care.
Nationally, the 87 existing Medicare Urgent Care Clinics have already seen more than 1,207,000 presentations since the first sites opened in June 2023. This includes more than 70,600 presentations to the five clinics in Tasmania.
Quotes attributable to Minister Butler:
"The Launceston Medicare Urgent Care Clinic is one of the busiest in the country. That's why we're delivering more funding so it can be open longer.
"Locals know that when they need urgent care the clinic is there for them.
"Most importantly all locals need is their Medicare card not their credit card.
"Only Labor will strengthen Medicare by delivering more bulk billing and more urgent care clinics."
Quotes attributable to Senator Helen Polley:
"The Launceston Medicare Urgent Care Clinic has been a game changer for our community.
"I know many families that have used the clinic when otherwise they would have been stuck waiting for hours at the LGH.
"Only a Labor Government will continue to strengthen Medicare for Northern Tasmania."
