The Nationals’ Member for Euroa and Shadow Assistant Minister for Health, Annabelle Cleeland, has renewed calls for urgent reform to Victoria’s non-emergency patient transport system and the Victorian Patient Transport Assistance Scheme (VPTAS), warning the current setup is failing regional patients.
Speaking in Parliament this week, Ms Cleeland said changes to eligibility criteria and long-standing issues with the VPTAS program were preventing rural Victorians from accessing critical medical care.
“This government’s changes to non-emergency transport, combined with a VPTAS system in crisis, are leaving regional Victorians behind, especially those who rely on regular treatment like dialysis,” Ms Cleeland said.
A government-commissioned review found the current system is not meeting patient needs. However, Ms Cleeland said regional health services were largely overlooked during the consultation process.
“Strict new rules around non-emergency patient transport might be manageable in Melbourne, but they are devastating for rural patients who don’t have alternative options,” Ms Cleeland said.
“Patients who previously had access to subsidised travel are now being told they’re ineligible.
“For people in small towns with no public transport, this means they are missing appointments or unable to receive treatment altogether.”
Ms Cleeland also raised ongoing concerns about VPTAS, which is supposed to reimburse rural patients for the cost of travelling long distances to access specialist care.
“Patients are waiting months for reimbursements while calls and emails go unanswered. The system is clearly overwhelmed,” Ms Cleeland said.
“With the rising cost of living, having to pay up front and then wait months to be reimbursed is putting significant financial strain on families already doing it tough.”
Strict eligibility criteria within VPTAS are also creating serious access barriers, with rural patients regularly denied support because they live just under the required travel threshold, even when no local treatment is available.
“This is a system that punishes people for where they live,” Ms Cleeland said.
“It is not just a bureaucratic failure. It is a moral one.”
Ms Cleeland is calling on the Minister for Health to urgently reform both the non-emergency transport criteria and the VPTAS reimbursement system.
“Regional patients deserve affordable, timely access to care. This government must stop ignoring the needs of rural communities.”