Portfolio — 19 August 2026

The Minister for Veterans' Affairs and Minister for Defence Personnel, Mr Keogh, used question time to announce a reform to veteran allied health referrals and to respond to concerns raised directly by veterans about service access. The appearance paired a policy announcement with an acknowledgment that he had not responded promptly to an earlier meeting request.

Mr Keogh told the House he had missed an earlier request to meet veterans and said he met with them the previous night to listen to their concerns [TA-260818-house-3c50651fdca4:s154]. He said the government intends to ensure there is no gap in allied health services for veterans and will incorporate feedback from veterans and providers into an ongoing consultation process.

The centrepiece announcement was a reform introducing a $5,000 threshold for veteran referrals to allied health care, with an alternative approval pathway for cases presenting higher clinical need [TA-260818-house-3c50651fdca4:s158]. Mr Keogh said a discussion paper will be released shortly to engage veterans, ex-service organisations and allied health practitioners in the consultation.

The portfolio's stated approach centres on improving access to allied health care by simplifying referral pathways and attracting more providers through better payment arrangements [TA-260818-house-3c50651fdca4:s158].

The reform pairs a cost-threshold mechanism with a clinical-need override, allowing referrals above $5,000 to proceed through an alternative approval pathway where clinical circumstances warrant. The consultation process will test whether the threshold and the alternative pathway address the access concerns veterans raised with the Minister. The discussion paper's release timeline and the specific payment arrangements intended to attract more allied health providers remain to be detailed.