REGIONAL Victorian lives are being put at risk by Labor’s state and federal “infighting” over health policies, according to Member for Mallee Anne Webster.
Federal Health Minister Mark Butler has urged the Victorian Government to review its controversial GP payroll tax, while the Victorian Government is concerned about Mr Butler’s plans to take more than $2 billion in health funding from the states and territories over the next five years.
“People are suffering through a regional health workforce crisis yet all Labor want to do is point fingers at each other,” Dr Webster said.
“Bulk billing is dropping at an alarming rate, regional hospitals are in a state of neglect, doctors are leaving regional areas to practice in peri-urban areas but neither the federal or state governments are focused on these issues.
“They are distracted by their own squabbling.”
According to Australia’s largest patient engagement platform HotDoc, 16.5 per cent of practices surveyed also said they would be forced to close their doors due to the government’s payroll tax grab, which would force more people into the state’s overflowing hospitals.
Under current arrangements, Victorian GP clinics are liable for payroll tax on employees such as receptionists and nurses. But a ruling by the State Revenue Office last August will see payroll tax also applied to GPs.
The changes have been slammed by the Australian Medical Association and the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, who have claimed it will lead to GPs clinics being forced to increase fees or shut down.
Mr Butler urged the Victorian Government to consider an alternative model where doctors under lease agreements are exempt if the patient fees and out-of-pocket expenses are paid directly to doctors.
“Payroll tax is a matter for states, but I am very worried that the historic investments we’ve put into Medicare, in response to calls from state governments, will be lost to increase payroll tax obligations by general practices,” Mr Butler said.
Dr Webster said Mr Butler was attacking the Victorian Government over its GP payroll tax to protect his own image.
“The Victorian tax hike subjects doctors to a retrospective bill – in some cases millions of dollars – while also compromising regional Victorians’ access to healthcare,” Dr Webster said.
“State payroll tax changes make primary care less affordable, especially in the regions where clinics are forced to raise fees already higher on average than their Melbourne counterparts, or risk going out of business.
“It is a disgraceful tax grab and totally unacceptable.
“Fewer than one in four Australian GP clinics offer bulk billing to all adults in 2024, down more than 11 per cent over the past year. Increased fees undermine the community benefits from Mr Butler’s Medicare investment claims.
“Regional Victorians find it hard enough to see a doctor, without being deterred from seeing their doctor due to increased out of pocket costs. All this dreadful politicking of people’s health will result in, is poorer health outcomes.”
Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas accused the Federal Government of violating a healthcare funding agreement and described Mr Butler’s recent comments as “uninformed” and “gratuitous”.
Mr Pallas said he wrote a sternly worded letter to Mr Butler because of “continuing irritation” over the Commonwealth’s “failure to be a full and robust partner when it comes to health care funding”.
“We had an agreement at national cabinet level around an adequate level of funding,” Mr Pallas said.
“Now we’ve got false assumptions around the demand in the health care system that will have a very substantial adverse impact upon the state’s capacity to provide the necessary services that the community expects and deserves.”
According to the Victorian Treasurer, the cuts are based on “erroneous assumptions” about healthcare activity following the post-pandemic.
“They’re entitled to whatever gratuitous views that they might want to proffer around the provision of health care in the state,” Mr Pallas said, adding that “at the very least” the Commonwealth needed to “honour the terms of the agreement that was struck with the Prime Minister and the premiers”.
“We don’t care who’s in Canberra,” he said. “We expect who is in Canberra to do the right thing by Victorians, and when they’re not doing it, we’ll call it out.”
Mr Pallas said the payroll tax law that applies to GP clinics “applies to every other business in the state”.
“Under our payroll tax system, we don’t exclude any industry or activity,” he said. “We simply base it upon the number of employees and those that are employing like within the employment of those companies. If we start taking out one particular group, where does it stop?”
