INCREASE PATIENT TRAVEL SUBSIDIES
Thousands of Queenslanders in regional and remote areas are having to choose between feeding their families or accessing medical treatment.
Patients forced to travel far distances for hospital treatment are sleeping in cars and outside hospitals, because they cannot afford accommodation and petrol costs.
Despite skyrocketing living and travel costs, the government’s travel subsidies haven’t increased for over a decade, pushing thousands into financial stress.
Rural patients are at higher risk of hospitalisation, injury and death, and now they are faced with additional barriers to accessing healthcare.
Fuel has increased so must the reimbursement. Accommodation charges have increased but the nightly subsidy rate hasn’t.
Sign the petition asking the Queensland Government to review the Patient Travel Subsidy for fuel, travel and accommodation as a commitment to breaking down the barriers for rural patients, so that every Queenslander has access to healthcare that meets their needs.
6 Responses
Thank you for sponsoring this petition. It’s such an important issue as many rely on the subsidy to access health care services not available locally. Money should not be the reason people don’t access the care they require.
It is needed its very hard & unaffordable to pay high cost in accommodation.especially for Rural/Country people . We need more help.
It is bad enough that Regional people are forced to travel to Brisbane for medical treatment & this is made worse by knowing that we will be out of pocket for travel, food & accommodation costs during the treatment. The out of pocket costs on all these expenses continue to rise is making it almost impossible for families, couples & single patients to cope with the inflating cost. It is obvious why more & more are leaving private cover & falling back on & relying solely on the public system.
Heaven forbid – that system is on life support & the workers are fast running out of energy to provide CPR.
Increase patient travel subsidies, the subsidies have not been increased since 2012!
Having lived in rural areas until recently, the current subsidies leave people out of pocket to the extent they either don’t stay in the city for the time they should to get and continue medical care but instead take the risk and go home. The PTS is a vital service that is badly needed considering the fact that patients cannot get the treatment they require in their own city. Costs have gone up many times over the 10 years but the PTS hasn’t. Time to change that.
Time to do the right thing.