Australia’s healthcare system is facing a crisis. We are facing a shortage of GPs, while our hospitals are underfunded, while here in Mackellar we are facing a youth mental health crisis. As our population ages, we must also develop policies that mean older Australians can lead dignified, safe and healthy lives.

As a former GP, I know firsthand the importance of meeting our community’s healthcare needs. Our mental and physical health impacts everything we do – our quality of life, our capacity to work, our financial security and our families.

It is essential that we have accessible, equitable, best-practice healthcare that is responsive to our needs and a health system best prepared, resilient and well-resourced for future health challenges.

My key health and aged care policy priorities are:

• Making it cheaper and easier for Australians to access healthcare via our GPs and hospitals
• Boosting mental health services so everyone, especially young people, can access help when they need it 
• Reducing health costs through greater federal investment in our public hospitals 
• Improving the health of young Australians by banning junk food advertising targeted at children and young people
• Supporting wage increases for nurses and midwives, and improving nationwide nurse to patient ratios to prevent burnout and improve patient care 
• Delivering a higher standard of aged care by implementing the recommendations of the Aged Care Royal Commission
• Supporting our communities by prioritising long-term public health planning and training
• Supporting community-led family and domestic violence services
• Creating a national climate, health and wellbeing strategy to ensure our health system is prepared and can respond to the impacts of climate change

My actions on health and aged care policy:

• Moved the ‘Healthy Kids Advertising Bill’ which aims to tackle chronic disease and childhood obesity by protecting our children from predatory junk food marketing. See here. 
• A member of the Parliamentary Inquiry into diabetes which is inquiring into prevention, diagnosis and treatment of the disease including its relationship to obesity
• Voted in favour of 60-day medicine dispensing to help reduce the cost of medicines and make it easier for people to see their GP – this change will save patients $180 a year
• Called for the establishment of a National Health, Wellbeing and Climate Strategy which is now under development and fully funded
• Successfully moved an amendment to the Government’s Higher Education Support Bill to help address GP and nursing shortages
• Am co-chairing the Parliamentary Friends of GPs Group which aims to develop policies that will grow our primary care network, so all Australians have cheap and easy access to a GP
• Advocated for an increase in the Medicare rebate to increase the number of GPs bulk billing patients
• Voted to ensure aged care residents receive 24/7 registered care in aged care facilities
• Argued the government needed to do more to protect our children from vaping – with the government since announcing a ban on non-therapeutic and single-use vapes
• Worked with Aged Care Minister Anika Wells to support the residents and families of people who have been impacted by the closure of the Wesley Taylor aged care centre in Narrabeen
• Supported a Private Member’s Bill from Independent MP for Goldstein Zoe Daniel, which would ban gambling advertising in a bid to protect children from being targeted by gambling companies
• Spoke in the House on the youth mental health crisis on the Northern Beaches