Tuesday, 25 August 2026

 Georgie CROZIER (Southern Metropolitan) (12:34): (1434) My question is to the Minister for Health. Regional Victorians are sleeping in their cars, crowdfunding accommodation and delaying medical treatment because they cannot afford to travel for care. VPTAS pays just 21 cents a kilometre for travel and $45 a night for accommodation – rates that have barely changed in a decade and are the lowest in Australia. On 28 July your predecessor said in an answer to a question from me that VPTAS’s role is to:

… ensure that rural and regional Victorians are not left out of pocket for essential travel …

In a cost-of-living crisis, Minister, why has the government failed to increase VPTAS reimbursements in line with CPI?

 Ingrid STITT (Western Metropolitan – Minister for Health, Minister for Mental Health, Minister for Ambulance Services, Special Minister of State) (12:35): Thank you very much for your question, Ms Crozier. I am certainly cognisant of how important it is for regional Victorians to get access to the health care that they need. That is why our government continues to make record investments in not just health but also ambulance services to support our paramedics. When it comes to the non-emergency transport system, this is an important part of the system, and we will always ensure that that system delivers to those Victorians that need transportation when it comes to their health needs. We continue to review the arrangements that are in place, and we are as a government very well aware of the cost-of-living pressures that Victorians are facing. That is why we have a range of different programs in place across different government departments and portfolios to support Victorians, and the non-urgent transport program is just one of many.

 Georgie CROZIER (Southern Metropolitan) (12:36): Minister, I refer again to the previous minister’s answer on 28 July, when she said:

… we implemented some changes to the VPTAS to make things easier for Victorians who access the scheme …

On the contrary, recent eligibility changes have in fact made it harder for patients to access VPTAS assistance for flights from Mildura. Seventy-three-year-old cancer patient Pearl now faces a 10-hour bus or train trip to Melbourne for a PET scan, and young Claudia, who is living with juvenile idiopathic arthritis, will miss three days of school every month for treatment since she falls outside the criteria for VPTAS support. Minister, what advice did the government receive to justify the changes that have left Pearl and Claudia ineligible for assistance?

 Ingrid STITT (Western Metropolitan – Minister for Health, Minister for Mental Health, Minister for Ambulance Services, Special Minister of State) (12:37): I thank Ms Crozier for her supplementary question. As I have indicated in the house previously, if there are individual constituents that require any follow-up, I am very keen to make sure that we facilitate that and get the appropriate answers from the department. So if Ms Crozier would like to provide me with those details, I would be more than happy to follow up and provide an answer to Ms Crozier outside of the standing orders.

Georgie Crozier: On a point of order, President, that is an example I am using to show the ineligibility criteria. The minister needs to answer the question I asked. They are examples. There are plenty more. That is just a cop-out from the minister, and I would ask you to ask the minister to answer the question.

The PRESIDENT: I believe the minister was relevant to the question.