Telehealth announcement

The Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced $392million in funds for telehealth, the majority ($250m) of which will provide Medicare rebates for online consultation. This was a major barrier to tele-health uptake in Australia, and now may be summarily removed.

More details follow below:

The Australian Labor Party telehealth fact sheet is available. A summary is below:

This investment will help people who live outside capital cities get the health care they need. In many cases it will save patients the time and expense of travelling long distances to see medical specialists, and will help them to see the right specialist sooner.

Federal Labor’s $392.3 million investment will provide:

• $250.5 million to make Medicare rebates available for online consultations across a range of specialties, providing around 495,000 services over four years to rural, remote and outer metropolitan areas.
• $56.8 million to provide GPs and specialists with financial incentives to participate in delivering online services.
• $50 million to expand the GP after hours helpline and include the capacity for the helpline to provide online triage and basic medical advice via videoconferencing.
• A $35 million fund to support training and supervision for health professionals using online technologies. 

The Prime Minister's campaign launch outlined the prospect of this investment. The complete speech is available although this quote is probably most relevant

[I]t is disturbing to me, it’s unacceptable to me, it’s offensive to me, that if you live in rural and regional Australia you are up to three times more likely to die within five years if you are diagnosed with cancer than other Australians. Literally, your chance at life is less. And that is because it is harder for people in regional and rural Australia to get access to the services, to the health care professionals they need. [...]

Australians who live in rural and regional areas, and outer suburban communities where specialists are short, we will have a Medicare rebate which enables them to Medicare rebate their consultation using the internet now, and broadband tomorrow. So they can see the health practitioner they need from the offices of their local General Practitioner rather than moving town, moving city, moving state, which is what has to happen now. [...]

Under this scheme you will be able to go to your local General Practitioner and consult face to face, through the power of the internet, and then evermore quickly through the national broadband, with your specialist, without having to go far from where you live, from the care and concern of your family and friends"

The Hon. J. Gillard, Prime Minister Australia, August 16, 2010