Labor announces $135m to set up 70 Medicare bulk-billing urgent care clinics across Australia

Urgent care clinics to treat minor injuries will be established across the country under a $135m Labor plan to ease pressure on emergency departments.

Labor has promised to set up 50 bulk-billed urgent care clinics across Australia so patients with minor injuries do not have to wait at emergency departments.

The Medicare-funded clinics – based on a model operating in New Zealand – would be based at GP surgeries and community health centres at a cost of $135 million over four years.

In his third health-focused announcement in as many days since the campaign started, Opposition leader Anthony Albanese on Wednesday will again push Labor’s focus on healthcare.

“Labor’s Medicare urgent care clinics will mean more families will get top quality care from a nurse or a doctor without having to wait in a hospital emergency department,” Mr Albanese said.

“These clinics are a key part of Labor’s plan to strengthen Medicare by making it easier to see a doctor.

“Medicare urgent care clinics will take the pressure off emergency departments, so they can concentrate on saving lives.”

Ambulances outside the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Camperdown, Sydney. Picture: Damian Shaw

At least one of the clinics would be based in Melbourne, which is where Labor’s campaign has moved after Mr Albanese visited three marginal seats in Tasmania.

The clinics aim to free up overburdened hospital emergency departments by treating less serious – but still urgent – medical issues such as minor burns, ear and eye problems, wounds, insect bites and broken bones or stitches.

Mr Albanese said the clinics would be open seven days a week from at least 8am to 10pm and would not need appointments.

They would have different sizes and structures, depending on the needs of the area they were based.

A trial of the clinics would be based on a model proven successful in New Zealand, which has the lowest rate of emergency department attendance per capita in the developed world.

Under Labor’s plan, Medicare would be used to bulk bill treatment in 50 urgent care clinics across Australia. Picture: Supplied

“Medicare urgent care centres are a practical, tangible example of Labor’s commitment to strengthen Medicare and make it easier for families to access care,” said shadow health minister Mark Butler.

“Medicare is the bedrock of our health system and by using it to help take the pressure off hospital emergency departments, we can make the whole system stronger.”

It comes after Mr Albanese promised on Tuesday to reverse changes to some psychiatric telehealth services in regional areas that came into effect in January.

According to psychiatrists the changes have meant people with serious mental health issues have paid between $400 and $600 upfront and left $200 out of pocket after only receiving some of it back on Medicare.

On Monday Mr Albanese promised $6.5m to build two new support centres in Tasmania and Sydney to help children with hearing loss.

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