MEDIA RELEASE
DATE: Monday, 16th February 2009
The Australian College of Nurse Practitioners (ACNP) is questioning Minister
Roxon’s commitment to practical, immediate initiatives in the reform of health care
with today’s release of the National Health & Hospitals Reform Commission’s
interim report A Healthier Future for all Australians. The report does not recommend
immediate access to rebates for medicines that patients have prescribed or tests
ordered by all nurse practitioners but instead wants to start with rural and remote
areas. This disadvantages Australians in the areas of access to safe and effective
healthcare and equitable service delivery.
Nurse practitioners are established in many areas around Australia and in a number of
specialties. They require that patients have access to Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme
and Medicare rebates for the scripts they write and the tests they perform in order to
save patients hundreds of dollars and hours of time. In the current recommendations
patients who have been competently assessed and diagnosed by a nurse practitioner
are required to take up a second, costly and often not very timely consultation with a
doctor just to access cheaper medicine or to be bulk billed for tests. This increases tax
payers costs and can lead to life threatening and wellness diminishing delays in
accessing healthcare. In the current economic crisis the Australian College of Nurse
Practitioners is questioning this misuse of taxpayer’s money and also the
inconvenience to their patients and their medical colleagues. President Ms Helen
Gosby says “The saving grace of this report is that it is an interim one and we look
forward to seeing patients receive access to properly funded and timely nurse
practitioner care. ”
-ends-
Authorised by the Australian College of Nurse Practitioners
Contact person: Helen Gosby (National President) 0401626743 or Elissa O’Keefe
(National Secretary ACNP) 0421 221 926
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