The National Rural Health Alliance (NRHA) welcomes the re-appointment of Mark Butler as Minister for Health and Ageing and Emma McBride as Assistant Minister for Rural and Regional Health. We also welcome Rebecca White as Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care.
"We stand ready to continue our strong collaboration with Minister Butler, Assistant Minister McBride as well as other Ministers and Assistant Ministers to advance rural health reform across Australia," said NRHA Chief Executive Susi Tegen. "We acknowledge Assistant Minister Rebecca White's long-standing association with rural communities and look forward to working with her."
NRHA continues our calls on the government to implement a National Rural Health Strategy to coordinate Commonwealth, State, and Territory investment in health, aged care, and disability service delivery for rural Australia. This Strategy must recognise the complexities in delivering equitable access to healthcare in rural and remote communities.
"There needs to be a greater rural lens when health programs are implemented since rural, regional and remote communities need different models of care. Current approaches are not delivering coordinated, transparent or sustained solutions," said Ms Tegen.
"This returned Labor government can now act on the recommendations of key reviews undertaken in the last term of government. This includes the comprehensive Scope of Practice Review which looked at health professions and how to make the most of their skills and expertise. Many of the recommendations in this review pointed to the need for flexible, place-based, block funding, which will support rural and remote general practices and multidisciplinary team-based models to improve the quality of care and help treat chronic and complex conditions.
Almost one-third of the Australian population lives and works in rural and remote Australia. They contribute significantly to the economy despite receiving $848 less per person per year in healthcare funding compared to their urban counterparts. This gap results in poorer health outcomes and earlier death due to reduced access to healthcare services.
"We look forward to working with the Ministers and this government to ensure that rural communities receive the healthcare they need and deserve," concluded Ms Tegen.
About us:
The National Rural Health Alliance (the Alliance) comprises 54 national organisations committed to improving the health and wellbeing of the over 7 million people in rural and remote Australia. Our diverse membership includes representation from health professional organisations, health service providers, health educators, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health sector and students.
