New urgent care sites for South Australia
The Prime Minister, Premier and two health ministers have announced the sites for Medicare Urgent Care Centres which are designed to draw patients away from South Australia’s struggling hospital system.
Ambulances outside Flinders Medical Centre. Photo: Tony Lewis/InDaily
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, federal Health Minister Mark Butler, Premier Peter Malinauskas and SA Health Minister Chris Picton were all at the press conference in Adelaide this morning to announce where the centres will operate.
The centres are being designed to treat people needing “non-urgent” or “semi-urgent” medical help with the state and federal ministers claiming this accounts for more than 40 per cent of presentations at SA hospitals.
It is expected the new Medicare Urgent Care Clinics (UCC), which will operate extended hours, seven days a week, will open from October this year. The rest with be open by the end of the year and each will offer walk-in care that is fully bulk billed.
Following an Expression of Interest process four clinic sites have been picked:
- Marion Domain Medical and Dental Centre will be established as the Marion Medicare UCC
- Old Port Road Medical and Dental Centre will be established as the Western Medicare UCC
- Elizabeth Medical and Dental Centre will be established as the Elizabeth Medicare UCC
- Mount Gambier Family Health will be established as the Mount Gambier Medicare UCC.
A fifth Medicare UCC, which will be established in the outer southern suburbs, is in final contract negotiations with an announcement to be made soon.
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