Sykes: Petition to revise Patient Transport Scheme Nationals Member for Benalla, Bill Sykes, is calling on the State Government to revise and update

Source: Sykes Media Release

Nationals Member for Benalla, Bill Sykes, is calling on the State Government to revise and update the Victorian Patient Transport Assistance Scheme (VPTAS).

Dr Sykes said patients and carers continued to raise the issue with him concerned that the current system is unrealistic and that the assistance criteria unfairly disadvantages rural people.

Dr Sykes is urging local residents to sign a petition which will be presented to Parliament during the next sitting. The petition seeks to draw attention to the inequitable nature of the current level of reimbursement under VPTAS and points out that many rural patients are disadvantaged under the current scheme.

Patients wishing to utilise the VPTAS must travel 100 kilometres or more one way from the patient’s place of residence to the treatment location of the nearest approved medical specialist. Patients can also apply for a ‘block treatment’ if travelling an average of 500 kilometres per week for five consecutive weeks or more.

“The actual application of these guidelines means many patients throughout the Benalla electorate are missing out on VPTAS because they either fall short of the 100 kilometres, sometimes by just 1 kilometre or their travel is less than five consecutive weeks.”

Dr Sykes said, “Criticism of the VPTAS system by members of the public has been ongoing. Just this week I received correspondence from a prostate cancer patient, who needed to travel for treatment every day for 2 weeks over a period of two years at a total distance of 5600 kilometres. He was not eligible for transport assistance because the travel was not in a five week block.”

Dr Sykes said in light of ongoing criticisms from members of the public a review of the criteria that underpins arriving at these inconsistent outcomes for patients was essential. He also said any review of the criteria should take into account that medical treatments for many serious illnesses has changed, resulting in some instances, in a reduction of visits by patients.

Dr Sykes also said there was a clear need for the current rates to be reviewed given increasing fuel prices.

The Department of Human Services undertakes a fuel review every two years. From October 1 2007 the State Government raised the transport subsidy from 14 cents per kilometre to 17 and the accommodation subsidy to $35 per night from $30.

Dr Sykes has raised the issue in Parliament on more than one occasion and said; “The issue is that the rate of assistance is very low. These rates have been disappointingly low for a long time but the impact of them has been accentuated or exacerbated by increasing fuel prices.

“More realistic rates for the reimbursement of travel costs in the commercial world are more in the order of 50 to 80 cents or even $1 per kilometre and accommodation costs is more in the order of $100 a night.”

Dr Sykes highlighted that a lot of the people asking for assistance have very little money; “It is really a big call and a big demand on their pocket to be able to find the money to access health services which people living in Melbourne and other large communities take for granted.”

Other key components of VPTAS are the high level of paperwork involved and a delay in the reimbursement of money.

Dr Sykes said he had raised the issue with the Minister for Health and was pleased the minister has undertaken to look at the situation.

“While the minister’s attention at the moment is specific to a particular area of Victoria I would hope he will also look at the bigger picture.”

Media contact: Bill Sykes (03) 5762 2100 or 0427 624 989 www.billsykes.com.au


Bill Sykes MP, State Member for Benalla
Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Agriculture & Water
Ph: 03 5762 2100 Fx: 03 5762 4478 Mobile: 0427 624 989
Email: bill.sykes@parliament.vic.gov.au