The Parliamentary Budget Office has today confirmed the Turnbull Liberals are committed to billions of dollars in further health cuts.
The PBO’s Unlegislated measures carried forward in the budget estimates confirms the Turnbull Government remains committed over the medium term to:
- $4.3 billion in further cuts to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme
- $1.2 billion in cuts to the Medicare Safety Net
The PBO report confirms Malcolm Turnbull’s Liberals are just as disastrous for health as they were under Tony Abbott.
In his very first economic statement just before Christmas Malcolm Turnbull ripped another $2.1 billion out of health by slashing bulk billing for diagnostic imaging and pathology and gutting crucial health workforce training programmes.
This was on top of the $60 billion in health cuts Malcom Turnbull approved as a member of Tony Abbott’s cabinet including $57 billion in cuts to hospitals, and $2 billion in cuts to Medicare by freezing rebates for GP Visits.
Now, the independent Parliamentary Budget Office has confirmed even worse is in store.
Legislation still before the parliament to hike the cost of essential medicines will rip a further $4.3 billion out of the pockets of patients over the forward estimates.
This is despite the Minister for Health promising in May that “I am not going to waste time putting things through the Parliament that are going to be voted down by my colleagues.”
Sussan Ley – Press Conference – 21 May 2015
The PBO report also confirms the government remains committed to attacking some of Australia’s most vulnerable patients by cutting $1.2 billion from the Medicare Safety Nets.
The PBO report confirms that no matter who the leader is, the Liberals only ever see health as a source of Budget cuts, and will always look to make health less affordable for those who need it most – the sick and the poor.
Once again, none of these cuts are being reinvested back into the health system. Once again this government is ripping billions out of health to prop up its failing Budget, making patients pay.
The PBO report confirms, yet again, only Labor can be trusted to defend Medicare and Medicare will never be safe under the Liberals, regardless of who the leader is.