Dear all,

Just wanted to provide a quick update to all of our petition supporters.

Thanks to a collective effort from multiple parties, we can confirm that the de-funding of rural and regional psychiatry telehealth services will be addressed in the upcoming federal budget update in October (please see attached correspondence from the Department of Health and Aged Care).

We are uncertain of the exact details of this upcoming announcement, and are not sure whether this represents a full reversal of previous changes. Please keep talking to media, your local MPs, or any other key decision makers to ensure accessible psychiatric care is restored to rural and regional areas.

Unfortunately other specialist telehealth items that were de-funded from 1st Jan 2022 have not had a positive response from the Federal Government. We will continue our efforts to lobby the Federal Government to improve access to non-GP specialist healthcare for rural and regional Australians.

Many thanks for your interest in supporting this petition. I have no doubt you have helped us in getting this response from the Federal Government, and encourage you to continue talking to media, MPs, and any key decision makers who may be able to further help this cause.

Kind regards,

Dr Raymond Wen