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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1996 Week 10 Hansard (3 September) . . Page.. 2966 ..

Mr De Domenico: Did you believe that?

MR BERRY: I believe it. Mr Speaker, it is very serious to have that situation develop in our hospital system, where the good workers in the Emergency Department have their style cramped because of insufficient resources within the system. People might ask, "How are we going to fix that?". If Mrs Carnell were one to stick to her promises - we all know that she is not - perhaps extra services would have been provided in the intensive care unit or the cardiology care unit in order that it would not choke up. Mr Speaker, I do not know how many times this has happened; but this is a serious issue for the hospital system. So, we have that situation.

Now we move on to the important issue of community care. Mrs Carnell has been out there, trying to create an artificial disincentive for people to go to an accident and emergency department. She is saying, "Do not come here if you are not really sick or your case is not an emergency. You should go off to your GP. Rush off to your GP". I must say that that was sensible under a Labor regime, because we had out there a long list of bulk-billing salaried medical officers who could treat people - - -

Mrs Carnell: You had 12.

MR BERRY: Twelve; that is a long list - 12 community medical practitioners who bulk-billed patients, and they received free services. Mrs Carnell seems to think that, if you cut out a service, those requiring the service will just go away. Mr Speaker, the people who cannot afford to pay the extra fees that some GPs charge are entitled to think that they can front up at the hospital and get care which they believe to be in their best interests. They are entitled to believe that their Chief Minister and Health Minister would not be critical of them for doing that. That is the situation. Their Chief Minister and Health Minister expects them not to come to the hospital. She would prefer them to go somewhere else. She would prefer them to go to a GP, even if they have to pay extra.

I repeat: If you take away an important community service - that is, bulk-billing salaried medical officers - the people whom they normally treat have to have somewhere else to go. So, Mr Speaker, in emergencies, I expect that they will go to the hospital system, and they should be encouraged to do so in their own interests. On my last calculation, the ACT has the lowest rate of bulk-billing doctors in Australia. So, when a cruel Chief Minister, an uncaring Health Minister, takes out an important sector of the delivery of health services in Australia, what do you expect? Of course, some of them will end up in accident and emergency. In a perfect world, where there are alternatives to accident and emergency, it may be better if they do not turn up there; but they will now, and they have to be treated properly.

Mr Speaker, I think I have touched on all the issues of importance. Yes, the Emergency Department is an important part of our hospital system. Yes, the people that work in it are dedicated people and provide a quality service, within the limitations of government funding and the resources within the hospital system. That brings me to the hospital system, Mr Speaker. The budget blow-out - - -

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