Liberal MP says cut city GPs to fix regional doctor shortage

After nine years in government, the best Liberal MP Rowan Ramsay can come up with to address the rural GP crisis is to reduce medical services for people in the city. 

Mr Ramsey told ABC radio his government should look at restricting Medicare provider numbers for city doctors and limiting Medicare payments for city patients. 

The Member for Grey then bizarrely claimed “we are overtraining doctors in Australia, we’ve got more doctors than we need."  

Instead of blaming doctors and sick people in the city, Mr Ramsey needs to take responsibility for the “third world conditions” he says the GP shortage has created in his own electorate. 

Government figures show people living in Grey have also had the highest increase in out-of-pocket expenses for GP visits than anywhere else in the state. 

Senator Karen Grogan’s survey of Grey residents’ experiences accessing a doctor show many people are travelling to Adelaide for GP appointments and other basic healthcare.  

Many people say they can’t get a face-to-face appointment with a GP because they do not have access to rapid antigen tests. 

Senator Grogan will table the survey responses at the upcoming Senate inquiry into regional health service shortages which is sitting in Whyalla on 1 March.  

Anyone wanting to complete the survey should visit Senator Grogan’s Facebook page before 23 February.