The National Council of Primary Care Doctors (NCPCD), representing primary care leaders across Australia, has released its 2026 pre-Budget joint statement, calling for targeted investment in longer consultations, workforce sustainability and culturally safe care.
The Council warns rising demand, increasing clinical complexity and ongoing workforce pressure are placing strain on patients, practices, emergency departments and doctors—particularly in rural and remote communities.
NCPCD Chair Dr Rod Martin says general practitioners and Rural Generalists are seeing more patients with chronic and complex conditions, and that care takes time.
"Right now, Medicare doesn't support longer consultations, which risks fragmenting care across the system," Dr Martin says.
He says the Council is also calling for workforce sustainability to be a priority.
"We need to focus on keeping the doctors we already have—especially in rural and remote communities—by supporting supervisors, small practices, and registrars and their families," Dr Martin says.
The Council also calls for better support for culturally safe and inclusive care, including investment in tools to help practices measure and improve how they deliver care—supporting better patient outcomes.
Together, the Council says these reforms would deliver immediate, system-wide benefits for patients while reinforcing general practice and Rural Generalism as the cornerstones of Australia's health system.
Further information on the NCPCD Budget Statement is available here.
About the National Council of Primary Care Doctors (NCPCD)
The National Council of Primary Care Doctors (NCPCD) represents the interests of general practice and primary care in Australia, comprising leaders from the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM), the Australian Indigenous Doctors Association (AIDA), the Australian Medial Association (AMA), General Practice Registrars Australia (GPRA), General Practice Supervisors Australia (GPSA), the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP), and the Rural Doctors Association of Australia (RDAA)
