Scott Morrison pledges $70 million health boost for senior Australians
At least 50,000 Australians will access an extra $70m cash injection to help ease cost of living pressures regardless of who wins the election.
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At least 50,000 more Australians will gain access to a $70 million cash boost to help ease cost of living pressures regardless of who wins the election.
Both major parties spent Monday making their pitch to senior voters, promising the expansion to the health concession card along with cheaper medications.
Under the proposal, 50,000 more residents will become eligible for a Seniors Health Card from the first of July, aiming to lower the cost of a range of health and essential services.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced the election promise on Monday, which will see the income limit threshold raised to $90,0000 for singles and $144,000 for couples.
Labor has already matched the government’s $70 million promise to ease the cost of living for senior Australians.
The card is currently held by approximately 436,000 Australians over the age of 67 who don’t quality for the pension.
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Mr Morrison says the change is “sensible” and “affordable”.
“We want to make things that bit easier for self-funded retirees as well and extend the access of the Commonwealth Seniors Health Card,” Mr Morrison said today.
“We’re going to lift the eligibility for access to the Commonwealth Seniors Health Card for singles, where it’s currently $57,761 to $90,000. And that will take effect on the 1st of July. “We’re also going to raise the limit for couples as well, up from $92,416, up to $144,000 for couples.
“Now, that is going to mean there are 50,000 additional Australians aged 67 and above, people who’ve saved for their retirement who don’t ask for much, but as they move into their senior years and they have to access more and more medications, this makes a difference to their cost of living.
“There’s not a lot we can do about things that are happening overseas that are impacting on our economy, but these practical things that we’re doing as a government makes those cost of living pressures just that bit more able to be dealt with, whether it’s in tax relief, whether it’s in the direct support to those on fixed incomes and pensions, or easing the burden of the cost of medications and the eligibility for the Commonwealth Seniors Health Card.
“This is a permanent change. It’s indexed and it means that Australians and more Australians will continue to get access to the Commonwealth Seniors Health Card.
Mr Morrison said the additional concessions vary state by state where “they provide travel discounts on public transport, some you can even get a cheaper fishing licence”.
“I think it’s a good change. It’s a sensible change. It’s an affordable change. But it recognises that self-funded retirees have worked hard. They’ve saved for their retirement. They want that independence they’ve worked hard for.
“And this will help 50,000 more Australians be able to have access to that certainty of the health care that they wish to have as they move into their senior years.”
Labor agreed with the policy, with a joint statement from Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese, Shadow Minister for Families and Social Services Linda Burney and Shadow Minister for Health and Ageing Mark Butler saying: “We’re not interested in playing politics when we see a good idea.”
“Unlike the Morrison Government, we can be trusted to deliver on our announcements for older Australians and pensioners. The Liberals have a habit of making promises to pensioners at election time but cutting support at budget time.
“Over the course of their decade in power, this Government tried to lift the pension age to 70 years, and when Scott Morrison was in charge as Minister, he took 90,000 seniors off the Pensioner Concession Card. When Labor was last in government, we delivered the biggest lift to the pension in history.”
Originally published as Scott Morrison pledges $70 million health boost for senior Australians
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