New Incentives will Bring Doctors to Rural and Regional Areas
Rural and regional families are set to benefit from more doctors in their communities as the Australian Government increases the rewards and incentives for doctors to move to these areas.
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1 July 2010
Rural and regional families are set to benefit from more doctors in their communities as the Australian Government increases the rewards and incentives for doctors to move to these areas.
City doctors who move to regional or remote areas will receive up to $120,000 in relocation payments, under a suite of incentives the Australian Government is rolling out from 1 July 2010 to boost the rural health workforce.
The Minister for Rural and Regional Health, Warren Snowdon, said a strong economy and decisive action during the global financial crisis has enabled these important investments, providing a fairer share and more support for rural and regional Australian families.
The Australian Government’s Rural Health Workforce Strategy, will invest $134.4 million in incentives, including giving rural doctors access to retention payments of up to $47,000 a year — an increase from $25,000.
More than 2,400 doctors around Australia will for the first time become eligible to receive retention payments and professional support to remain in rural and remote areas.
Similarly for the first time, almost 500 communities have been classified as regional, meaning that more rural communities will benefit from improved health services.
“We are tackling the health workforce shortages in regional and remote areas across the country by introducing a generous package of financial and non-financial incentives for doctors who relocate to rural areas.
“The Government’s approach is ‘the more remote you go, the greater the reward’ to encourage doctors to work in some of Australia’s more remote communities and keep them there. There’s no doubt people living in rural and remote areas will benefit from these new incentives,” Mr Snowdon said.
“Further, from July 1 more than 3,600 overseas trained doctors with restrictions on where they can practise will be able to discharge their obligations sooner if they work in rural and remote communities.
“Likewise, Medical students with a HECS debt can now repay the cost of their studies up to three years earlier by working in rural areas.
An important part of the Rural Health Workforce Strategy, is the implementation of locum programs for rural doctors to give them adequate time for rest and professional development. Some locum services have already commenced with many doctors and rural and remote practices already taking advantage of the support provided by these programs.
These investments form part of the Australian Government’s commitment to deliver better hospitals and better health outcomes to Australian families, regardless of where they live.
“The Australian Government has an ambitious reform agenda because we believe Australian families deserve better health and hospitals. We are determined to deliver the biggest reforms to health since the introduction of Medicare by creating a National Health and Hospital Network,” Mr Snowdon said.
Rural health programs will benefit significantly from the Government’s reform plans. The latest Federal budget provides more than $795 million in targeted rural health programs – more than a 65 per cent increase on the last term of the previous government.
To further improve health services for communities in rural and remote areas, the Australian Government is delivering:
- 1,000 new nursing training places every year and an additional 1,300 GPs qualified or training by 2013
- Around 23 new GP Superclinics, in addition to the 36 Superclinics previously announced, many in rural and regional Australia
- 137 projects across Australia to provide essential health infrastructure, equipment and service planning for rural and remote communities under the $46 million National Rural and Remote Health Infrastructure Program (NRRHIP)
Media contact: Alice Plate 0400 045 999 or Alice.Plate@health.gov.au
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