VICDOC Summer 2025 - Flipbook - Page 60
sustainability, scope and viability. The
2026 forecast
new Private Specialist Practice Policy
Council created a formal forum for the
The coming year will be demanding.
issues affecting private specialist
The 2026-27 State Budget is expected
care, including Medicare rebates and
to be tight, reflecting the pressures on
private health insurance settings.
state finances. Enterprise bargaining for
The Regional and Rural Doctors
public sector doctors, led by ASMOF
Policy Council ensured that pressures
Victoria with the support of AMA Victoria,
outside metropolitan Melbourne informed
will continue and will shape many of the
the broader agenda. These structures
conditions under which doctors work.
strengthened AMA Victoria’s ability
The Health Services Plan and the Local
to draw on member expertise and
Health Service Networks will move further
supported more consistent
into implementation. The psychological
policy development.
safety regulations will, we hope, begin to
Improving our 2026 position
These combined efforts shaped the
year and improved our position ahead
going into 2026. The pressures affecting
the health system are longstanding and
structural, and no single year can resolve
them. Steady, targeted advocacy can,
however, prevent further deterioration,
support practical adjustments and create
conditions for longer-term improvement.
In 2025, administrative burden was
recognised as a system issue, with
commitments to reduce mandatory
influence employer behaviour. Pressures
on general practice will remain. All of
this will unfold in the lead-up to a state
election on 28 November, which will
heighten scrutiny of the health system
and the decisions taken within it.
These settings create opportunities to
press for clearer commitments and to
secure improvements that have been
difficult to achieve in recent years.
AMA Victoria enters 2026 with stronger
structures, deeper member engagement
and constructive relationships across
government, regulators and health services.
training duplication and progress
statewide recognition of prior learning.
The work of 2025 has positioned the
Ahpra advanced work on fee equity and
organisation to advocate with greater
notifications processes. The GP registrar
clarity and reach, even in a constrained
incentive expanded. Psychological
environment. The task now is to apply
safety duties became enforceable. AMA
that position to ensure that decisions
Victoria’s access to government, the
made in 2026 support safe care,
department and regulators strengthened,
sustainable practice and a healthier
allowing concerns to be raised earlier and
working environment for doctors.
in more detail.
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