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A re -elected Labor Government would invest $ 1 billion in mental health services in Australia, in which the highest mental health agency of the Nation has described a “historical investment.”
The commitment includes $ 225 million to deliver 21 new Medicare mental health centers and update 10 centers throughout the country, many of the regional centers.
There would also be $ 200 million to expand head space services, $ 500 million for specialized care centers and $ 90 million to train 1,200 new mental health professionals.
The announcement forms a critical pillar in what Prime Minister Anthony Albanese describes how the Labor Plan to “strengthen Medicare”, surpassing the coalition in youth mental health, while leaders prepare for their first debate on the electoral campaign in Sydney on Tuesday night.
“I want everyone to, and especially young people, can access the mental health care they need,” said Albanese.
“Whether you need short -term support or continuous care, young or old, we will make sure that a free mental health service backed by Medicar will be there for you and your family.”
Mental Health Australia Carolyn Nikoloski CEO said the package “It will mainly increase access to free mental health support throughout the country “, while Headspace CEO, Jason Trethowan, said the commitments” would provide support to younger ones. “
Nikoloski said that “it also responds to some of the real pressures facing the sector, by increasing the pipeline of the mental health workforce, so that we can respond better to the mental health needs of the community, both now and in the future.”
‘Work has failed Australians’ in mental health
One of the first campaign commitments of the opposition leader Peter Dutton was $ 6.2 million to improve the Melton head space, in the western suburbs of Melbourne.
“It is just a Dutton coalition government who will address the youth mental health crisis,” he said.
“Last year, a quarter of Australian young people delayed or avoided seeking professional support for their mental health needs because they simply could not pay it.
“The work has failed the Australians when it comes to mental health, but we are committed to change that.”
Mental health was a key focus of the response discourse to the budget of the opposition leader, where it promised $ 400 million for youth mental health services, and to expand the National Center of Excellence in Youth Mental Health, which it established as Minister of Health in 2014.
Dutton also pledged to permanently double the sessions of psychologists subsidized in Medicare from 10 to 20 per year, what the work has not coincided.
Health Minister Mark Butler said only “would repeat the mistakes of the past.”
“You cannot double the number of sessions without duplicating the number of psychologists, or creates a bottleneck that means that tens of thousands of Australians do not receive help,” he said.
Until now, work has campaigned almost exclusively in health, claiming that the coalition would not honor its bipartisan commitment to invest $ 8.5 billion in Medicare, something that Dutton has labeled with “wrong information.”
The coalition has pledged to invest $ 9 billion in health, which includes its mental health policy.
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