I am pleased to announce that the Australian Government intends to provide a grant of $200,000 over two years under the Round the Clock Medicare program to establish a new bulk-billing after-hours GP clinic in Ryde.
Funding has been offered to Family Care Medical Services to establish a clinic in Ryde and contract negotiations will commence immediately.
Recently the New South Wales Government announced their intention to fund 12 additional GP after-hours services at a cost of $8 million. My announcement today complements this NSW Government commitment.
It would be logical if the NSW Government were to match the Australian Government's $200,000 grant and assist in locating this service at the campus of Ryde Hospital or as close as possible to the hospital. If that commitment is provided quickly, the proposed after-hours service could be up and running within three months of signing a contract.
This new clinic will ensure the local community has better access to after-hours medical care. It will also decrease pressure on local GPs by providing an alternate option for the after-hours care of their patients.
The clinic will be one of many after-hours services being created or expanded as a result of the Australian Government investment in after-hours care under Round the Clock Medicare: Investing in After-Hours GP Services.
For example, over 70 after-hours services have been funded by the Australian Government nationally since the introduction of the Round the Clock Medicare program, including similar co-located clinics at the Nepean and Liverpool Hospitals.
I welcome the support of the Hornsby Ku-ring-gai Division of General Practice. This support from local GPs recognises that community access to after-hours primary care services can be dramatically improved which will help both local doctors and their patients.
The Round the Clock Medicare initiative, announced in 2004, provided $62.5 million over five years to extend after-hours general practice.
By delivering on its Round the Clock Medicare election policy commitment, the Australian Government is helping to restore after-hours GP care both in metropolitan and regional Australia.