The Albanese Government has delivered on its commitment to Gold Coast residents, following the official opening of the Gold Coast Medicare Urgent Care Clinic on Monday.
This clinic, based at Our Medical Home Gold Coast in Oxenford, delivers on the Albanese Government’s commitment to make it easier for people in the Gold Coast to get the urgent treatment they need – from highly qualified doctors and nurses – while taking pressure off local hospitals.
It will be open for extended hours, 7 days a week, and offer walk-in care that is fully bulk billed.
Over 40 per cent of presentations to the Gold Coast University Hospital are for non-urgent or semi-urgent care.
The Gold Coast clinic will join five clinics that are already operational in Ipswich, Logan (Browns Plains), Murrumba Downs (Redcliffe), South Brisbane and Toowoomba. The final five Queensland Medicare UCCs in Bundaberg, Cairns, North Brisbane, Rockhampton and Townsville, will all open before the end of the year.
The Albanese Government will continue to work closely with Primary Health Networks and the Palaszczuk Government to deliver the remaining clinics.
Quotes attributable to Minister Butler:
“The Gold Coast Medicare UCC is going to make a big difference to patients across the Gold Coast.
“Local communities will be able to walk in, see a doctor or nurse and access imaging and pathology services.
“This clinic will ease pressure on the Gold Coast University Hospital, allowing them to concentrate on higher priority emergencies.
“The Albanese Government is committed to strengthening Medicare and making it easier and cheaper to get quality healthcare through our Medicare Urgent Care Clinics, by tripling the bulk billing incentive and making medicines cheaper.”
Quotes attributable to Senator Watt:
“We went to the election promising an urgent care clinic for the Gold Coast and we have now delivered it.
“This clinic will mean people in our community who need urgent care can get it quickly even if it’s outside standard hours and all they’ll need is their Medicare card.
“I know many families who have had to wait long hours at the Uni Hospital emergency department for non-life-threatening issues.
“This Medicare UCC will ease pressure on our local ED and be much more convenient for our community – closer to home, at short notice, and bulk billed under Medicare.”
Quotes attributable to Minister for Health, Mental Health, and Ambulance Services Shannon Fentiman:
“Gold Coast families deserve free, high quality health care close to home – and that’s exactly what the new Medicare Urgent Care Clinic will provide.
“Together with the Tugun Satellite Hospital, opening on Wednesday 15 November, we’re easing pressures on our busy hospitals and delivering more access to healthcare for families in the Gold Coast region.
“It’s so nice to see that after a decade of underfunding by the former LNP federal government, we now have a government that takes healthcare – particularly preventative healthcare – seriously.”
