The countdown has begun for the final 10 Australian Medicare urgent care clinics to be delivered.
There are now just 10 Medicare urgent care clinics left to be announced by the federal government to reach the target of 58 by the end of 2023.
Today the government announced that the Batemans Bay Medicare Urgent Care Clinic (MUCC) had opened its doors on Monday.
The Batemans Bay Medicare UCC is located at 7 Pacific Street and will be a welcome boost for NSW South Coast residents while taking pressure off local hospitals.
The MUCC will be open for extended hours, seven days a week, and offer walk-in care that is fully bulk billed. More than 55 per cent of presentations to the Batemans Bay Hospital are for non-urgent or semi-urgent care, according to the government.
This clinic will join 11 clinics that are already operational in NSW at Albury, Cessnock, Coffs Harbour, Lismore, Maroubra, Peninsula, Penrith, Rooty Hill, Tamworth, Westmead, and Wollongong.
The final two NSW MUCCs, located in Campbelltown and Lake Haven, will also open before the end of the year.
The Australian Government has committed to opening all 58 MUCCs before the end of this year.
Federal Health Minister Mark Butler said the Batemans Bay Medicare UCC would provide the community with access to urgent but not acute care, “quickly, even if it’s outside standard hours – and all they’ll need is their Medicare card”.
“This clinic will ease pressure on the Batemans Bay Hospital, allowing them to concentrate on higher priority emergencies,” he said.
Federal Labor MP for Gilmore, Fiona Phillips, said the Batemans Bay MUCC was “going to make a big difference to local patients across the South Coast”.
“We know how hard it is to see a GP, we know that local hospitals are under pressure and people are having to wait too long, pay too much, or travel too far to get the care they need, particularly in urgent but not life-threatening instances,” she said.
“This sees far too many people end up in our overstretched local hospitals unnecessarily.
“I’m delighted that the Batemans Bay Medicare UCC will provide the close to home urgent care that local people need, and be bulk billed under Medicare.
“This is particularly true during school holiday periods when our population doubles in size, putting even more pressure on our local services. This walk-in clinic will make a real difference to the local community, and I am so pleased it is now open in time for the Christmas rush.”
MUCC countdown: And then there were 10 The Department of Health and Aged Care lists all the available MUCCs here.