Queensland’s Inala Primary Care has made a submission to the government to establish more equitable care.
A major policy proposal has been launched by Brisbane GP practice Inala Primary Care as part of the Health Equity Coalition.
The submission, titled Investing in Comprehensive Primary Care – A Proposal for Establishing Health Equity as a Core Element in General Practice Funding Models, was released in April.
The submission from proposes a blended funding model that would ensure more equitable funding of healthcare based on community needs.
The elements of this equitable approach to healthcare funding are as follows:
- Using the Medicare fee-for-service to continue funding for direct GP care.
- Further incentives and block funding to support additional staffing and time needed to address more complex patients.
- The scaling of funding to prioritise not-for-profit practices to address issues of effective care coordination and time intensive care.
According to the practice, this is not a universal solution but rather a targeted model that “enables comprehensive, multidisciplinary care that keeps people well and out of hospital”.
“The Health Equity Coalition is a Brisbane-based collaboration of not-for-profit organisations committed to fair and accessible healthcare,” Inala Primary Care stated.
“This proposal has been reviewed by several peak bodies and aligns with long-standing calls for reform across the sector.
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“Incorporating lessons from Aboriginal Medical Services, rural health organisations, and community health providers, the proposal builds on what already works in other underserved settings.
“It’s time to bring that same level of structural support to metropolitan not-for-profit practices caring for the most disadvantaged.”
The American ‘Federally Qualified Health Centre Program’ was provided as an example for how smaller health centres could be financed via government loans.
“The time for implementation of this model is now,” Inala Primary Care stated.
“Through a coalition of providers, we propose to continue to co-design implementation stages, share training, systems and even people.
“This will make implementation more cost effective.”
