As many as 47,000 people in Northern Queensland say they skip going to the GP because of cost, with this statistic only set to get worse if Malcolm Turnbull doesn’t act in 13 days’ time and drop his health cuts in his Budget.
In addition around 74,000 people in Northern Queensland say they skip filling prescriptions because of cost.
With this in mind, it simply doesn’t make sense for Malcolm Turnbull to be cutting billions from Medicare, driving up out-of-pocket costs for GP visits and vital medicines.
Shadow Minister for Health Catherine King and Senator for Queensland Claire Moore visited a Edmonton GP clinic today, to hear first-hand how the Turnbull Government’s cuts are impacting local medical care.
“Queensland has unique health challenges which mean that locals simply can’t afford any more barriers to health care,” Ms King said today.
“Since the election, bulk billing for GPs has dropped across the state – meaning more Queenslanders are paying to see a GP. Concerns like this are weighing heavily on Cairns doctors, who have only seen local health issues compound under the Abbott Turnbull Government.”
“Warren Entsch needs to pull his head out of the sand, start standing up for his constituents and demand that every single health cut is dropped once and for all,” said Senator for Queensland Claire Moore.
“The damage has already been done, but the least Malcolm Turnbull could do is stop it from getting worse and drop his horrible health policies that are hurting Cairns residents.”
WEDNESDAY, 26 APRIL 2017