Greens to pitch unlimited psychologist appointments on Medicare
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The news: The Greens will make free unlimited psychologist appointments via Medicare a key election commitment, warning it will be put on the table in any hung parliament negotiations.
The context: Currently, Australians can access a maximum of 10 subsidised mental health sessions approved if approved by a GP. But the Greens say their plan would remove that cap and provide a $150 rebate for any session with a clinical or registered psychologist.
Greens leader Adam Bandt will unveil the plan in Macnamara, a key target seat in Melbourne where they ran Labor MP Josh Burns close in 2022.
Australia’s mental health system has been groaning under the weight of demand since Covid-19, with many jurisdictions reporting long wait times to see psychologists. The Australian Bureau of Statistics estimated that nearly one in five Australians had either delayed or not seen a psychologist at all because of prohibitive costs in the 2022-23 financial year.
In August, Bandt unveiled a wide-ranging “Robin Hood” tax regime on big corporations they estimate would raise over $500 billion in a decade.
The Greens say that plan will fund its free mental health plan, and will be pushed in negotiations if Labor fails to strike a majority — which polls suggest is an increasingly likely scenario.
The Greens are recovering from two difficult results at elections in the ACT and Queensland, where they lost seats.
What they said: “If you’re putting off mental healthcare because you can’t afford it, you’re not alone,” Bandt said.
“The Greens will make big corporations pay their fair share of tax so you can see a psychologist for free and get unlimited mental health appointments through Medicare.”
The sources: Greens press release, Australian Bureau of Statistics
