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GOOD NEWS - ABOUT BLOODY TIME!!!
A wonderful morning in Dubbo with Deputy Premier Paul Toole and Minister for Western NSW and Local Member Dugald Saunders announcing a significant boost to the Isolated Patients and Travel Accommodation Assistance Scheme as part of the NSW Budget.
For the first time, the scheme will be expanded with patients seeking non-commercial clinical trials, high risk foot clinics, highly specialised publicly funded dental health clinics and ocularists to be eligible for assistance.
The subsidy for people requiring accommodation will be almost doubled, while the NSW Government will also nearly double the private vehicle subsidy rate from 22 cents to 40 cents per kilometre for patients who have to travel more than 100 kilometres for care.
Following months of lobbying by the Regional Accommodation Providers Group (RAPG), of which Rotary Lodge Port Macquarie is a member, and Can Assist, the Minister for Regional Health announced changes to the Isolated Patients Travel and Accommodation Assistance Scheme (IPTAAS) rebates for rural and regional patients today.
The main changes are:
1. Increase in travel rebate from 22c/k to 40c/k for patients who live 100k from the facility or specialist or who travel more than 200k in a week visiting the facility or specialist.
2. The single rebate has been abolished saving many single patients hundreds of dollars.
3. The rebate for the first seven nights is now $75 (up from $43 a single and $60 a double)
4. The rebate for stays of eight days or more in a financial year is now $120 (up from $65 a single and $85 a double)
5. There is no difference between the rebates for commercial and not-for-profit facilities.
The changes to IPTAAS will result in significant savings for many rural and regional patients.