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The Mediscare campaign by the Labor Party is an unethical, unscrupulous attempt to put fear into the electorate, already suffering from a cost-of-living crisis and unable to afford the medical treatment they need. It is also deceiving voters. We need a government with integrity, and I intend to work for that integrity and accountability if elected.

As an Independent Candidate for Leichhardt, I intend to work for those who are vulnerable and those struggling to make a go of it. I will work for businesses and professionals, Indigenous and non-Indigenous. We are all in this together.

I am disturbed that COUCH, which has done such good work in helping cancer patients in Far North Queensland, is running out of funds, and I commit to seeking support for it.

Cairns and the Far North would benefit from the availability of Occupational Therapy and Medical Imaging courses locally. Healthcare professionals trained locally are more liable to stay and work here.

This is in response to the call from CQUniversity for bipartisan support for $27.5 million to be able to provide this training in the Far North. I would go in to bat for this.

There is a shortfall in the healthcare workforce in the Leichhardt area, with the need for occupational therapists alone rising by 20% over the last five years. We don’t want to see the healthcare industry struggling to meet community needs, and we don’t want to see our people missing out on the care they need.

Restore Hope and Health

It is sickening that the highest cause of death for children and youth is suicide. The recent launch of the 2024 Kids Helpline Impact Report has shockingly revealed that children as young as seven are among the 11,682 children who reached out to Kids Helpline with suicidal thoughts.

I will work to restore hope in the future for our children and support increasing services for them. Health is a key area of my campaign, and I stand for:

• Increase suicide prevention programs, especially for children and youth
• Support the doubling of Medicare-subsidised mental health sessions from 10 to 20 on a permanent basis
• Increase funding for public hospitals to reduce surgery waiting lists and ambulance ramping
• Support 9bn payment to Medicare to increase bulk-billing
• Independent regulator to oversee the private health insurance industry to get value for money and reduce the gap fees
• Increased funding to get more GPs available
• Attract regional health workers and ensure health services in regional areas are adequate, including the provision of renal dialysis services to Indigenous communities.