How the parties responded to Our Health Still Counts

Read this post in Easy Read (PDF).

People with intellectual disability said to the political parties “Our Health STILL Counts”!

Here is what the parties have said to CID.

CID and our campaign partners said we wanted the next Federal Government to

1. Implement the National Roadmap for Improving the Health of People with Intellectual Disability: We are three years into the ten-year Roadmap and there is a lot more to do.
2. Train doctors: Ensure health professionals and students get the training they need to provide quality health care to people with intellectual disability.
3. Incentivise GP care: Help doctors to spend more time with people with intellectual disability.
4. Make people with intellectual disability a priority in the next National Health Reform Agreement

A full list of the commitments we sought is here.

Response from the Labor Party:

• People with intellectual disability deserve respectful, high quality health care.
• The voices of people with intellectual disability are crucial to improving their health care.
• Labor continues to support implementation of the National Roadmap.
• Labor will work with the intellectual disability community to identify and support solutions to critical health issues.

View the Labor Party’s statement (PDF).

Response from the Liberal/National Coalition:

• The Coalition will continue to work with stakeholders on implementation of the Roadmap. This includes for improving training of health students.
• The Coalition will ensure that all levels of government provide the support that people with disability need.

View the Coalition’s statement (PDF).

Response from the Greens:

• The Greens support the National Roadmap.
• People with intellectual disability should be a priority for incentivised GP care.
• The Greens will expand the Roadmap Primary Care Enhancement Program from 4 Primary Health Networks (PHNs) to all 31 PHNs around Australia.
• The Greens will invest $10m in general disability awareness training for health professionals.
• People with intellectual disability should be a priority in the next National Health Reform Agreement.

View the Greens’ statement (DOCX).

Our comments

We welcome ongoing support from the parties for the National Roadmap. We acknowledge the significant actions to date by the previous Coalition Government and the current Labor Government, including the establishment and initial implementation of the National Roadmap and funding of the National Centre of Excellence in Intellectual Disability Health.

However, we are disappointed that, apart from The Greens, the parties’ statements to us do not include more specific commitments.

CID and our campaign partners will continue to advocate strongly for full implementation of the National Roadmap and other health initiatives that are needed.

We look forward to working with the incoming government on this.