STATEMENTS BY SENATORS

Senator STEWART (Victoria) (13:32): You can now see a GP for free at more than 3,800 clinics across Australia, making it easier for Australians to get the health care they need when they need it. Access to affordable health care shouldn't depend on where you live. For families across Nicholls—which is where my mum lives—from Shepparton to Echuca and from Seymour to Cobram, seeing a doctor has become easier and more affordable because of this government's investments in Medicare.

The results are clear. In Nicholls, bulk-billing rates have increased from 74.9 per cent to 89.8 per cent, with 39 bulk-billing practices now serving local communities. We're seeing that change on the ground.

In Shepparton, clinics like Wyndham House Clinic have moved to fully bulk-billing because of the Albanese Labor government's investments in Medicare, making health care more accessible for local families. The Shepparton urgent care clinic is also delivering for the community, offering free walk-in care seven days a week and taking pressure off the local hospital, with more than 37,000 visits already.

But the real test of Medicare isn't a percentage on a spreadsheet; it's whether a parent in Shepparton can take a sick child to a doctor without worrying about the bill, it's whether an older person in Echuca can afford the medicines that they need, and it's whether families in Seymour know that, when they need health care, help is there. That's what strengthening Medicare means.

That's what these investments are delivering for families and communities on the ground. Good policy must work nationally, but it needs to succeed and deliver locally. Across Nicholls, people are seeing the difference not just in statistics and not just in announcements but in the peace of mind that comes from knowing affordable health care is available close to home.