Senate mental health Inquiry outcome reflects huge workload and misinformation
AMA President, Dr Steve Hambleton, said today that this week’s messy and divided outcome from the Senate Community Affairs Committee Inquiry into the Commonwealth's funding and administration of mental health services reflects the enormity of community interest in mental health, and the confusing and misinformed input from some key stakeholders.
The Inquiry received over 1500 submissions, many of which focused on the Government's changes to mental health funding announced in the 2011/12 Budget, with over $400 million cut from Medicare funded GP mental health services.
Dr Hambleton said the Inquiry’s majority and minority reports place further doubt on the rationale for the Government’s cuts to mental health services accessed through general practice under the Better Access program, which took effect from this week.
“The Government’s changes have clearly caused significant concerns in the community and this is reflected in the divided opinions of Committee members, with the Inquiry unable to reach a consensus view.
“Indeed, the Government issued a minority report.
“The Inquiry clearly acknowledges that the Budget cuts will have an immediate impact on patients because alternative services being funded by the Government are not currently in place.
“It is clear that the key role of GPs in helping people with mental illness was not fully appreciated or understood by some Committee members.
“The AMA is particularly concerned that the Department of Health and Ageing did not properly assist the Committee with the evidence it provided.
“The Department told the Committee that GP mental health care consultations involved the same amount of work as a normal GP consultation, which is an insult to hardworking and highly skilled GPs.
“It would have been more appropriate for the Department to have brought the Committee's attention to a more appropriate comparison - GP management plans for physical illness.
“Medicare rebates for mental illness will now be lower than those for physical conditions.”
Dr Hambleton said that the minority Coalition report correctly identified the cuts to Medicare rebates for GP mental health services as being a cost saving exercise implemented with no genuine consultation with GP groups.
The AMA will continue to lobby for restoration of the Better Access funding and will monitor the effect that the Government’s changes will have on some of the most vulnerable patients in the community.
4 November 2011
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