Meryl Swanson: Canberra Matters | Push for urgent care clinic at Kurri Hospital

A significant priority for the people of Kurri Kurri and Cessnock has been local health care and the continued challenges of GP shortages.

We went to the May election with a clear commitment to deliver improved health care for this region and we are doing precisely that.

Within the first Parliamentary sitting, Labor took action to reverse the Morrison government's cuts to Medicare.

Many people across Kurri Kurri and Cessnock have experienced how hard it is to see local doctors and how expensive it's becoming to meet the costs of health care.

Labor has taken action to boost workforce incentives for rural and regional GPs to support the engagement of nurses, allied health and other health professionals and provide multidisciplinary team-based care for our community.

We are expanding the Collaborative Care programs across our region to attract more health professionals and to ensure we attract more GP graduates to our towns.

Our government has changed the rules to make it easier to recruit more doctors of their choosing - both local and overseas-trained GPs and is reducing the cost of medications to help household budgets.

We have expanded the newborn screening program, to better support expecting mothers and provide improved healthcare for newborns.

I have been meeting with community members to discuss concerns about the future of Kurri Kurri Hospital. Let me be clear: the Federal Labor Government will always back our hospital and ensure its service to our region.

With the high growth projected for Kurri Kurri, it's important that the NSW Government invest in our hospital to improve the facilities and keep them current with the region's needs.

At the federal election Labor committed to the funding of 50 Medicare Urgent Care Clinics, to take the pressure off our emergency departments.

As Labor work to find locations for these clinics, I will be making the case to the Health Minister both federally and at a state level that one of these clinics should be housed in the Kurri Hospital.

This will this make it easier for local families to see a doctor or nurse when they have a need for care.

I'll have more to say on the progress of these negotiations after the October 25 budget.

If you need support with a federal issue, please contact my office on 02 4983 2401 or via merylswanson.com.au.