A MASSIVE expansion to cancer services under Medicare was the centrepiece of Labor\u2019sreply to the federal budget reply, delivered by Opposition Leader Bill Shorten last week.<\/p>\n
Mr Shorten said the $2.3 billion Medicare Cancer Plan was \u201cthe most important investment in Medicare since Bob Hawke created it\u201d.<\/p>\n
He said Labor would put $600 million towards eliminating all of the out-of-pocket costs for diagnostic imaging, resulting in six million free cancer scans over four years.<\/p>\n
This will also apply to MRI scans and the cost of seeing a specialist.<\/p>\n
\u201cA new Labor Government will invest $433 million to immediately cover specialist consultations for cancer patients.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat this means over the next four years, is it means that an additional 3 million appointments will be bulk-billed \u2013 with no out-of-pocket costs.<\/p>\n
\u201cReducing what you pay from hundreds of dollars \u2013 to zero.\u201d<\/p>\n
Labor\u2019s \u201caffordable medicine guarantee\u201d will see every drug recommended by the independent experts listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.<\/p>\n
Mr Shorten said Labor would also match the Liberals\u2019 tax cuts.<\/p>\n
\u201cLabor will provide a bigger tax refund than the Liberals for 3.6 million Australians. All told, an extra billion dollars, for low-income earners in this country.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s always a lot of talk about tax from those opposite, but here is the simple truth: 6.4 million working people will pay the same amount of income tax under Labor as the Liberals.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd another 3.6 million will pay less tax under Labor.\u201d<\/p>\n
Labor will also uncap university places, double the size of its Rebuilding TAFE fund to up to $200 million and pay upfront fees for 100,000 TAFE places, including allocating 20,000 places to aged care workers and paid carers for the National Disability Insurance Scheme.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A MASSIVE expansion to cancer services under Medicare was the centrepiece of Labor\u2019sreply to the federal budget reply, delivered by Opposition Leader Bill Shorten last week. Mr Shorten said the $2.3 billion Medicare Cancer Plan was \u201cthe most important investment in Medicare since Bob Hawke created it\u201d. He said Labor would put $600 million towards […]<\/p>\n