Division
Dan Repacholi It's an absolute pleasure to do this speech in front of so many of my colleagues. I am standing here today in support of the Health Legislation Amendment (Improving Choice and Transparency for Private Health Consumers) Bill 2026. At its core, this bill is about something pretty simple. It's about making sure Aussies know what they are going to be paying for their health care. It's about giving people confidence in their private health insurance and it's about making sure the system is fair. Right now, for too many people, it unfortunately is not. While we're focused on making the system fairer and more transparent, those opposite have been very clear about their views on Medicare. They have argued that the system is unsustainable and that more of the burden should fall on individuals. I've spoken to plenty of people across the Hunter who have walked out of a GP appointment with their referral to a specialist only to hesitate, not because they don't want the care but because they don't know what it's going to cost them. That uncertainty is a real problem. We know that more than 800,000 Australians have delayed or missed specialist care because of cost. That is not just a number. That is people putting off treatment, and that is conditions getting worse. It is families worrying about bills instead of focusing on getting better. As somebody who serves as Special Envoy for Men's Health, I see this play out in a very real way. Blokes are already less likely to go to their doctor. They already tend to put things off. If you add in cost uncertainty on top of that, it becomes another reason to delay, another reason to say, 'I'll deal with this later.' I've had men in my electorate tell me straight up they did not follow through with a specialist appointment because they were worried about getting hit with a bill they just couldn't afford. Tim, a young bloke from Kurri Kurri, told me he was referred to a cardiologist. He had a young family, a mortgage and risin
House of Representatives, 2026-06-25. negative: ayes 10, noes 71.
Question
Dan Repacholi It's an absolute pleasure to do this speech in front of so many of my colleagues. I am standing here today in support of the Health Legislation Amendment (Improving Choice and Transparency for Private Health Consumers) Bill 2026. At its core, this bill is about something pretty simple. It's about making sure Aussies know what they are going to be paying for their health care. It's about giving people confidence in their private health insurance and it's about making sure the system is fair. Right now, for too many people, it unfortunately is not. While we're focused on making the system fairer and more transparent, those opposite have been very clear about their views on Medicare. They have argued that the system is unsustainable and that more of the burden should fall on individuals. I've spoken to plenty of people across the Hunter who have walked out of a GP appointment with their referral to a specialist only to hesitate, not because they don't want the care but because they don't know what it's going to cost them. That uncertainty is a real problem. We know that more than 800,000 Australians have delayed or missed specialist care because of cost. That is not just a number. That is people putting off treatment, and that is conditions getting worse. It is families worrying about bills instead of focusing on getting better. As somebody who serves as Special Envoy for Men's Health, I see this play out in a very real way. Blokes are already less likely to go to their doctor. They already tend to put things off. If you add in cost uncertainty on top of that, it becomes another reason to delay, another reason to say, 'I'll deal with this later.' I've had men in my electorate tell me straight up they did not follow through with a specialist appointment because they were worried about getting hit with a bill they just couldn't afford. Tim, a young bloke from Kurri Kurri, told me he was referred to a cardiologist. He had a young family, a mortgage and risin
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Related bills
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