Address to the House of Representatives, Bills - Appropriation Bill (No. 3) 2025-2026, Appropriation Bill (No. 4) 2025-2026, Appropriation (Parliamentary Departments) Bill (No. 2) 2025-2026 - Second Reading

Thursday 12 March 2026

I rise today to discuss the appropriation bills. We've heard from the health minister recently that the work the government is undertaking on bulk-billing is ensuring our bulk-billing rates are climbing and are back on the right track after years of lost investment under the previous government. In just three months, we have seen the bulk-billing rate for all Australians jumped to 81.4 per cent nationwide. That is the largest quarterly bulk-billing jump in 20 years, outside of the COVID pandemic. To put this into more practical terms, this increase in bulk-billing and bulk-billing practices means that approximately 96 per cent of Australians are now within a 20-minute drive of a registered Medicare bulk-billing practice.

But the ACT does face its own unique challenges when it comes to bulk-billing. While the relatively small uptick in bulk-billing in the ACT is welcome, there is more work to do. It's also one of the reasons I welcomed one of Australia's newest Medicare urgent care clinics in my electorate of Bean in the Woden Valley. This clinic opened in December of last year and strengthens the already existing network of clinics across the territory. It is the first in the ACT to be GP led. It's close proximity to Canberra Hospital means that it will work to take pressure off the emergency department at Canberra Hospital. I look forward to the tender being finalised for the three bulk-billing clinics that we committed to during the 2025 election. These clinics will be critical to providing greater access to affordable and accessible health care in Canberra.

This will soon be joined by more mental health support for Canberra parents. New and expectant Canberra parents will get free, personalised mental health support, with a new perinatal mental health centre to be established in Tuggeranong in Bean. The Albanese government funded centre will offer Canberran families support during the vital perinatal period, from pregnancy through to the baby's first birthday. This is a time when up to one in five women and one in 10 men experience anxiety and/or depression. The centre will help meet local demand for mental health care and provide psychological services with no out-of-pocket costs. This is in addition to the supports already provided by the Tuggeranong Medicare Mental Health Centre, an important avenue for those in my community to access mental health information, services and supports from qualified professionals over extended hours. Anyone can reach out for support for themselves, a loved one or a patient. It is free and no appointment or referral is needed.

But investments in health care do not stop just there. The Albanese government has made record investments in our healthcare system, reaching new agreements with the states and territories to deliver record funding into the hospital system. Here in the ACT, it will mean an additional $557 million boost to hospital funding, alongside additional funding of $75 million to assist with the challenges of being a smaller jurisdiction. This is part of a package that is worth over $4 billion in the ACT. The Albanese government has also established 1800MEDICARE, because life isn't nine to five, and neither should be access to health advice. This new phone line offers free advice and out-of-hours telehealth, backed by Medicare.

You should be able to get the medicine you need without worrying about the cost. That's why Labor is making prescription medication cheaper by slashing the cost of medicines listed on the PBS. From January, that has meant it's no more than $25 per script and just $7.70 for concession card holders. You will have heard many members on this side of the chamber, as well as key stakeholders, discuss the importance of this policy. This is from a Pharmacy Guild media release:

Every week, more than 400,000 prescriptions will now cost no more than $25—putting up to $6.60 back in patients' pockets for every prescription. It makes medicine the most affordable it's ever been.

It also stated:

The cost of medicine for those without a concession card is reducing to $25. That's the lowest amount since 2004 and only the second time in history that the price of medicine in Australia has been reduced.

These are direct quotes not from the government but from the Pharmacy Guild of Australia and their national president, Trent Twomey.

I was able to recognise these changes with the award-winning Wanni White Coats, the team down at Capital Chemist Wanniassa, led by Elise and Honor. I've risen in this chamber previously to acknowledge their incredible work. Joining them last December, I was able to directly hear from them how these record changes to the PBS will really help our community. Like many community pharmacies, they had noticed the cost pressures on constituents and had advocated for change.

I'm fortunate enough to be able to say that this pharmacy isn't the only award-winning pharmacy in Bean, with the team at Capital Chemist Mawson receiving Guild Pharmacy of the Year in 2024 and the team at Coleman Court being recognised for the same award in 2025. Knowing that I am, as part of the Albanese Labor government, able to support the work of these wonderful teams is one of the many privileges of my position.