At a time when the cost of living crisis is both making mental health worse and causing an increasing number of people across Australia to delay or miss out on essential mental health care, the Greens have announced a fully costed plan to provide unlimited mental health in Medicare as part of a plan for free mental healthcare.
The plan, one of the party's 'Robin Hood' reforms, will be paid for by taxing big corporations that are profiting off price gouging during a cost of living crisis. It will provide significant cost of living relief and enable all Australians to get the mental healthcare they need, with recent ABS data showing that 43% of people will experience mental health issues in their life and 24% of people who needed to see a psychologist delayed or didn't do so because of the cost.
The Greens' plan to get mental health into Medicare follows the Greens' commitment to build 6 Free Local Healthcare Clinics in each electorate, where publicly-employed psychologists, GPs and nurses would be available to provide healthcare for free, as well as a costed plan to get dental into Medicare.
This next step in the Greens' plan for "Free and Unlimited Mental Healthcare" will be announced by Greens Leader Adam Bandt, health spokesperson Senator Jordon Steele-John and Greens candidate Sonya Semmens in the key Greens target seat of Macnamara on Thursday. Macnamara is one of the closest electoral contests in the country. If 298 voters had changed their vote in the last election, the Greens would have won this seat. In 2022 the Greens received a 5.5% positive swing in Macnamara, while Labor's vote was almost stagnant with a swing of 0.9%.
With a minority Parliament looming, the Greens say that free healthcare will be a key policy for the Party this election and will be on the table and pushed in any minority Parliament negotiations after the next election.
THE GREENS' PLAN FOR FREE AND UNLIMITED MENTAL HEALTHCARE INCLUDES:
- UNLIMITED MENTAL HEALTH SESSIONS ON MEDICARE: Currently, Australians can access a maximum of just 10 subsidised mental health sessions through the Better Access Scheme (this number was halved from 20 by the Albanese Government in late 2022, resulting in the number of subsidised psychologist visits plummeting, by almost a quarter of a million sessions). The Greens will remove the cap, so you can access unlimited clinically relevant appointments.
- FREE PSYCHOLOGIST SESSIONS at 1000 free Local Healthcare Clinics across Australia
- INCREASED MEDICARE REBATE: The Greens will ensure you get a Medicare rebate of at least $150 for each session with a clinical or registered psychologist.
- SUPPORT THE WORKFORCE: The Greens will enable Provisional Psychologists to access Medicare subsidised sessions, and are committed to investing in lived experience by increasing the number of peer workers by 1000 workers, including First Nations peer workers. This will give people who need mental health care but don't need to see a psychologist more options.
The previously announced Greens plan to establish 1000 Free Local Healthcare Clinics across Australia, involves government-employed psychologists and nurses providing free services alongside GPs and dentists. There will be at least 6 Free Local Healthcare Clinics per electorate. These Free Local Healthcare Clinics will save the average psychology client up to $430 a year, though more frequent users will save up to $1720.
Each of these policies has been independently costed by the PBO. Based on this analysis, our plan would be expected to cost approximately $5.9b over the coming decade, as well as $31.7b already announced for Free Local Healthcare Clinics.
This election, the Greens are campaigning to hold their existing Senate seats and grow in the House of Representatives, in seats including Macnamara, Wills, Richmond, Sturt and Perth. In addition to stopping new coal and gas mines and ending native forest logging, the Greens will have a strong economic offering, centred around a series of 'Robin Hood Reforms' to tackle the housing and cost of living crises: a Big Corporations Tax on large companies' excessive profits, which will raise $514b over the decade, and fund 'Free and Unlimited Mental Healthcare', 'GP for Free', as well as other measures to come.
As stated by Mr Adam Bandt, Leader of the Australian Greens:
"If you're putting off mental healthcare because you can't afford it, you're not alone.
"Under Labor and Liberal, big corporations are price gouging and making massive profits during a cost-of-living crisis. Meanwhile, everyday people are forced to choose between getting mental healthcare and keeping a roof over their heads.
"1 in 3 big corporations pay no tax. The Greens will make big corporations pay their fair share of tax so you can see a psychologist for free and get unlimited mental health appointments through Medicare.
"Labor halved mental healthcare in Medicare, but the Greens' plan will make mental healthcare free and unlimited by expanding Medicare.
"This election, voters in Macnamara will have a choice between a Labor MP who's cut their access to mental healthcare and a Greens candidate who will fight to get mental health fully into Medicare and make it free."
As stated by Senator Jordon Steele-John, Greens Health spokesperson and Senator for WA:
"The Greens have a bold plan that will improve the health of our community, and bring down the cost of living.
"Too many people in our community are not able to access mental healthcare simply because it's too expensive. The Greens plan, which I am proud to announce today, will see people being able to get mental healthcare when they need it.
"Under Labor, the number of Better Access Scheme sessions has been cut from 20, to 10. This is leaving too many people unable to get Medicare-subsided Mental Healthcare. The Greens want to ensure that if you need more sessions with your psychologist, you'll be able to get them.
"We'll also increase the rebate and expand the range of providers able to offer Medicare sessions to include provisional psychologists.
"This plan to expand the Better Access Scheme sits alongside our plan to open 1000 local healthcare centres across the country where people will be able to see a psychologist for free.
"Today's announcement is the latest commitment from the Greens that will save the community thousands of dollars a year in healthcare costs. Our plan to get Mental Healthcare into Medicare sits alongside our plan to get Dental into Medicare and to get back to the GP for Free; these will bring us closer to a universal healthcare system."
As stated by Greens candidate for Macnamara Sonya Semmens:
"Everyone who lives in Macnamara should be able to access mental healthcare when they need it, but so many in our community are going without.
"Like 1 in 4 Australians I've experienced anxiety.
Like 1 in 5 Australians, I've had periods of depression.
Like 1 in 10 Australians, I've survived an eating disorder, the deadliest of all mental illnesses.
"As a parent I worry about how I'd afford to give my kids the mental health care that my parents could access for me when I was young - and which may have saved my life. It's an awful thing to do the maths on how much help you can afford to give your kids. We know early intervention is critical as a preventative for lifelong or severe mental illness, I'm absolutely determined that no person should put off getting the care they need.
"Every day people tell me the cost-of-living crisis is taking a massive toll on their mental health, while at the same time making it harder to get the mental healthcare they need. This is absolutely heartbreaking, and not the way it should be in our wealthy country.
"I'm so proud of our life-changing plan to deliver unlimited mental health on Medicare and enable people in Macnamara to see a psychologist with no out-of-pocket costs at a Free Local Healthcare Clinic.
"We can't keep voting for the same two parties and expecting a different result. If you want free and unlimited mental healthcare, the first step is to vote for someone who'll fight for you."
