A future Coalition Government will deliver a new Urgent Care Clinic for the Morisset community.
This important commitment to deliver better access to much needed urgent primary healthcare has been secured, thanks to the advocacy of The Nationals' candidate for Hunter Sue Gilroy.
Morisset and the lower half of the Hunter electorate has been taken for granted by Labor and has been overlooked for an Urgent Care Clinic. The Coalition will ensure this community is not taken for granted.
"Labor have had three years to secure an Urgent Care Clinic for the Lower Western side of Lake Macquarie, but they have failed to deliver," Sue Gilroy said.
"Our community deserves better than a second-rate health care system. As I have been doorknocking and talking to locals they have told me that it can take weeks to months to get into their own doctor and with that, there are no bulk billing doctors left in the area. If you need urgent care you must get an ambulance to Wyong Hospital. We need results and that is what this announcement is about today. The people of Hunter don't need more feelings of being ignored – they need access to affordable healthcare."
Under Labor, it has never been harder or more expensive to see a GP. Medicare bulk billing rates have collapsed from 88 per cent under the Coalition to 77 per cent under Mr Albanese and Labor. The situation is worse in Hunter; during Labor's three years, the GP bulk billing rate has dropped more than 13 per cent.
Ms Gilroy said as a result, 1.5 million Australians avoided seeing a GP last financial year because they just could not afford it under Labor. This is only adding further demand to already under-pressure hospitals.
"Only a Coalition Government will ensure Hunter gets the health infrastructure it desperately needs, easing the pressure on families and local hospitals."
