Health Minister Greg Hunt says the government will look to continue expanded access to telehealth after the coronavirus pandemic is over.
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Mr Hunt on Tuesday announced 44 headspace centres across Australia would share in more than $24 million of funding to reduce wait times for young people aged 12 to 25 seeking access to mental health services.
He said the pandemic had taken a toll on the mental health of many Australians.
"We're now at over 13.8 million telehealth services in Australia and a very large percentage of those have been for mental health services," Mr Hunt said.
He indicated the government was looking to continue access to subsidised telehealth appointments for GP and psychology services.
"We're looking to keep telehealth on a permanent basis going forward," Mr Hunt said.
Royal Australian College of General Practitioners president Dr Harry Nespolon welcomed the commitment.
"We have been working constructively with the federal government hand in glove to keep a comprehensive range of telehealth and telephone consultation services available post 30 September this year. This will support continuity of care with a patient's GP and help the patients who need it most," Dr Nespolon said.
"The comments today from Minister Hunt are another positive step forward. The government has been receptive to our calls on telehealth and telephone services so far and we look forward to working the government in the weeks and months ahead."
The government announced the $1.1 billion extension of telehealth services in March, as social distancing restrictions ratcheted up.
It allowed patients to receive consultations via telephone or video conferencing for GP services, mental health treatment, chronic disease management, and a wide range of other services that do not require face-to-face contact.
The extension was scheduled to run until September, when it would undergo a review.
Dr Nespolon said more than 99 per cent of GP clinics were doing consults via telehealth.
"We advocated so strongly for the expansion of telehealth and telephone services for good reason. It enables patients with a variety of health conditions to talk on the phone or via online platforms with their GP while minimising the risk of transmitting or spreading the COVID-19 virus," Dr Nespolon said.
Mr Hunt also announced the federal government would send masks to GP practices in areas that were likely to see an influx of visitors with coronavirus restrictions lifting.
Primary health networks will receive an extra five million masks from the national stockpile, while GPs in rural and regional areas will receive an extra two million masks.
Mr Hunt said the issue of personal protective equipment was raised during a community hall-style teleconference with residents across Eden-Monaro with Liberal candidate for the seat, Fiona Kotvojs.
Areas that are expecting a big uptick in visitors would be prioritised, as would areas running short.
Jindabyne in particular - which will see an influx of visitors over coming weeks and months for snow season - would benefit, Mr Hunt said.
Mr Hunt said even though the number of new coronavirus cases was dwindling in Australia, social distancing restrictions and border closures would remain in place for some time.
The two new cases notified over the past 24 hours were both acquired overseas, Mr Hunt said, with no cases of community transition.
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"That explains why our border protections remain so fundamental," Mr Hunt said.
"[There have been] 59 cases in the last seven days. Of those 69 per cent have been detected through the hotel quarantine or our border protection processes, so that's an immensely important part of our protection and defence and that will continue to be the case."
- For information on COVID-19, please go to the ACT Health website or the federal Health Department's website.
- You can also call the Coronavirus Health Information Line on 1800 020 080
- If you have serious symptoms, such as difficulty breathing, call Triple Zero (000)
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