SENATOR THE HON ANNE RUSTON

SHADOW MINISTER FOR HEALTH AND AGED CARE

DEPUTY LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION IN THE SENATE

SENATOR FOR SOUTH AUSTRALIA

TRANSCRIPT

INTERVIEW WITH CLINTON MAYNARD, SYDNEY NOW 2GB RADIO

Thursday, 3 September 2026

Topics: Labor’s health funding choices are putting patients and older Australians at risk.

E&OE……………………………………

Clinton Maynard: The Shadow Minister for Health. Hello, Anne.

Senator Ruston: Good morning.

Clinton Maynard: Good morning—good afternoon. What do you think about this decision?

Senator Ruston: Well, I think we just need to know the truth of the decisions, Clinton, because the government’s really good at going out and doing these big headline announcements about, you know, more money for cancer nurses, which, of course, we all welcome.

But we need to know: is money going to be transferred from somewhere else in the budget? As an example, from the work that Prostate Cancer Foundation Australia does for men who suffer from prostate cancer.

So, we just need to understand: is this a tricky sort of accounting budget treatment that the government’s doing, or is all the money they’re announcing new money? They just never want to tell you what’s actually going on.

So, I’m really concerned about the uncertainty that Prostate Cancer Foundation Australia finds itself in about where its funding is after the end of this financial year.

Clinton Maynard: Well, there doesn’t seem to be much consultation. Prostate Cancer Foundation Australia told me they believe the lives of men will be put in jeopardy by this. And, on the flip side, the government says, “Well, we’ve put $46.5 million into the McGrath Foundation cancer care nurses, who will then help with prostate cancer.” So, clearly, they’re not talking to each other either.

Senator Ruston: And this is the real problem—the uncertainty that’s created. I should imagine that any man who has been diagnosed with prostate cancer, who’s relying on the very specialist services of Prostate Cancer Foundation Australia—imagine the anxiety that they’re going through from this uncertainty.

Now, if the government’s prepared to come out and say all of the extra $46 million that they have announced is new money that’s going to new processes, new nurses, new supports, well, of course, everybody should welcome that.

But we need to know whether they are actually taking money from somewhere else to fund it. And they need to confirm that they are not taking money from Prostate Cancer Foundation Australia because they are the experts; they are the specialists—

Clinton Maynard: They’re the ones who are so worried. Genuinely, the government is saying the McGrath Foundation will provide the nurses, but they’re not prostate specialists—mostly breast cancer, which is equally as important, don’t get me wrong. But if Prostate Cancer Foundation Australia itself says this will put lives at risk, that’s the concern.

Senator Ruston: Well, the government has to dispel that concern. So, if this is what we’re hearing from the experts, then all the government needs to do is say, “Actually, that’s not the case, and here are the facts.”

If they’re not prepared to do that, you can actually understand why people are very concerned. I mean, the government can easily put this matter to bed, but it’s choosing not to, with tricky words like the response that you got from the minister.

So, I would call on the government: be absolutely clear about what you’re doing. Make it absolutely clear what your headline announcements actually mean. Because, if there’s one thing this government’s very good at, it’s headline announcements. They won’t give you the details, and then, when you find out the details, you actually find the headline announcement wasn’t quite as good as it sounded in the first place.

Clinton Maynard: I’m with the Shadow Minister for Health, Anne Ruston. And, while I have you here, I’ve been quite passionate about this particular issue: the changes to the private health insurance rebate for over-65s, which the government’s not backing down from. Now, where are we up to legislatively in Federal Parliament on that?

Senator Ruston: Well, the bill has gone through the lower house, and it’s currently in the committee stage of an inquiry.

In fact, today I have spent all day at an inquiry on this particular issue, where we heard from a series of witnesses, including six older—actually, seven older Australians—who gave their personal perspectives.

It was really incredibly touching to hear how these people, collectively—every single one of them—had more than 50 years that they’d been paying their private health insurance. They’d hardly ever claimed against it.

Now, right at a time when it’s so important to them, because they know that, as you get older, you’re more likely to need your health services, they feel like they’ve had that promise broken to them. They feel like the compact they had with the government, about doing the right thing all of their lives, has just been completely disregarded. And they feel like they’ve just been totally ignored by the government.

I think the government should listen to the testimony that we heard today and the testimony we’re going to hear as we take this around the country. Hopefully, the government will hear these voices and actually realise this decision—this policy measure—is fundamentally flawed.

Clinton Maynard: Again, it’s a piece of creative accounting because they’re moving money to aged care, which is necessary. I’m not saying that aged care shouldn’t get more money, but not at the expense of this.

Keep up the fight for that one, Anne. The Shadow Minister for Health, Anne Ruston. That is something that should not be happening.

ENDS

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