$8.5 billion funding package offers targeted support for GP workforce development while AMA continues push for rebate restructuring.
The Australian Medical Association has welcomed the Coalition matching the government's historic $8.5 billion Medicare funding package, with both major parties now committed to addressing the long-term underfunding of general practice.
AMA President Dr Danielle McMullen said in a media statement the investment follows years of relentless campaigning by the AMA on the need to urgently tackle the neglect of Medicare.
"Through our Modernise Medicare campaign, we highlighted the neglect of Medicare, which included years of frozen and inadequate indexation by successive governments," Dr McMullen said. "In 2023, our analysis of the impact of that freeze, and years of inadequate indexation, found close to $4 billion had been stripped from general practice."
However, the AMA maintains that structural reform remains essential alongside increased funding. The current Medicare rebate structure incentivises shorter consultations despite patients' increasingly complex needs.
"We cannot afford to ignore the need to look at the structure of the rebate system. Today's patients have increasingly complex needs, and they need more time with their GP, but the structure of Medicare encourages shorter consultations, meaning many patients are still subject to growing out-of-pocket costs," Dr McMullen explained.
Dr McMullen emphasised that despite expanded incentives, practices will still need to set fees based on their operating costs, with many GPs likely to continue private billing where bulk billing remains unviable.
"We know that for many of you, the triple bulk billing incentive will still not meet your costs, and you will continue to bill privately. We will continue to push for reforms to the underlying rebate structure to better support all GPs and patients."
Dr McMullen has been quoted extensively across major media outlets including ABC News , SBS News , 7News , and The Guardian , ensuring the AMA's position on Medicare reform reaches a wide audience. In her interview with SBS News, she cautioned: "We encourage the community to understand that while this does increase the eligibility of these incentives, it doesn't mean that every single practice will be bulk billing overnight."
