JOINT MEDIA RELEASE

Senator Anne Ruston
Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care
Senator for South Australia

Dr Anne Webster MP
Shadow Minister for Regional Health
Shadow Minister for Regional Communications
Federal Member for Mallee

Regional Australians paying the price for Labor's health failures

Wednesday 6 May 2026

The Coalition is calling out the Albanese Labor Government for failing rural and regional Australians after twelve leading nursing and healthcare organisations have warned that Medicare is no longer delivering for communities in the bush.

Shadow Minister for Health Anne Ruston said the powerful joint submission to the Senate inquiry into regional healthcare should finally act as a wake-up call for Health Minister Mark Butler.

“These are frontline healthcare professionals sounding the alarm about the growing healthcare crisis facing regional Australians,” Senator Ruston said.

“Nurses and midwives are doing a heroic job keeping these communities safe, but Labor is making it harder for Australians in the bush to access affordable healthcare with its reckless, one-size-fits-all approach to policy.

“The Albanese Government needs to explain why regional Australians are being forced to pay more and travel further to get the healthcare they need.”

The joint submission from twelve national nursing and healthcare organisations warned current Medicare and pharmaceutical policies are “materially compromising timely access to essential health services in rural, regional and remote communities.”

The organisations included the Australian College of Nurse Practitioners, Australian College of Nursing, Australian Primary Health Care Nurses Association, CRANAplus and the Congress of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Nurses and Midwives, among others.

Shadow Minister for Regional Health Dr Anne Webster MP said Labor had a shameful track record of failing to understand the workforce, distance and delivery challenges in regional healthcare.

“The lived reality in regional cities, rural towns and remote areas is that a nurse or midwife may be the most qualified health professional close to where you live,” Dr Webster said.

“Labor applies a one-size-fits-all policy approach across the health portfolio, when regional Australians suffer the tyranny of distance, inadequate workforce and thus poorer health status and outcomes than other Australians.

Dr Webster said the submission highlighted serious concerns around declining bulk billing rates for nurse practitioner services.

“While Medicare-subsidised nurse practitioner services have increased significantly, bulk billing rates have fallen from 94 per cent in 2015-16 to around 81 per cent in 2024-25,” Dr Webster said.

“That means more regional Australians are being left out-of-pocket for essential healthcare. During a cost-of-living and fuel price crisis, Labor is shifting healthcare costs onto regional Australians who have reduced access to alternative services.”

ENDS

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