Fairfield mayor Frank Carbone calls for Fairfield to be granted a full MRI licence

A southwest Sydney mayor has sparked calls to bulk-bill lifesaving medical scans as residents are forced to fork out hundreds to use a MRI machine while nearby hospitals offer screenings for free.

Fairfield mayor Frank Carbone has sparked calls to bulk-bill MRI scans in Fairfield.

A southwest Sydney mayor has sparked calls to bulk-bill lifesaving medical scans as residents are forced to fork out hundreds to use a MRI machine while nearby hospitals offer screenings for free.

Fairfield mayor Frank Carbone called for a review into the current MRI licensing system during his mayoral minute at the last council meeting after Fairfield was denied a full licence by the federal government to offer a Medicare rebate to patients.

This means residents have to pay the full MRI fee, ranging from $100 to $500 at Fairfield’s two MRI units – Lumus Imaging in Fairfield and Superscan in Fairfield Heights – which were granted partial Medicare eligibility.

Fairfield mayor Frank Carbone. Picture: Richard Dobson

Mr Carbone said in most cases, if Fairfield residents need a scan that’s not covered by Medicare they are referred to Liverpool where parking is “hard to come by and can be costly.”

“They (Liverpool) are servicing a large population area and Fairfield City and Liverpool alone are estimated to have close to 600,000 residents which is only going to increase with the government’s proposed housing growth targets,” he said.

“No one needs that headache when it comes to access to these potentially lifesaving scans,” he said.

Fairfield mayor Frank Carbone is pushing for MRI scans to be bulk-billed in for residents. Picture: stock image.

Mr Carbone said Fairfield was “once again forgotten” and deserves better access to “proper, adequate diagnostic services in our community”.

“There’s no equity in our city, even when it comes to health,” he said.

“We are the ones with less capacity to pay, less capacity to travel and less capacity to understand the systems due to our large migrant population.”

While MRI licences are granted by the commonwealth, Mr Carbone said the decision on the location of public diagnostic imaging facilities are made by state and territory governments.

“MRI licences should not be subject to politics, they should be available in all areas and be accessible to everyone on the basis of health care needs,” he said.

“The state government has once again failed the people of Fairfield. There is no fairness in the way it treats communities with the greatest needs.”

MRI machine being delivered to Mt Druitt Hospital as part of its expansion. Picture: WSLHD

“All local government areas in western Sydney have full MRI licenced machines but Fairfield city has none.”

This comes five years after the federal government announced a $175m cash injection towards 30 new MRI licences across Australia, where Mount Druitt hospital in Western Sydney was granted a full MRI licence.

The Department of Health has been contacted for comment.

The South West Sydney Health District declined to comment.