THE HON MARK BUTLER MP
MINISTER FOR HEALTH AND AGEING
MINISTER FOR DISABILITY AND THE NATIONAL DISABILITY INSURANCE SCHEME

The Albanese Government is already delivering on its commitment to open a further 50 Medicare Urgent Care Clinics across Australian with three opening in Victoria, bringing the totally number of clinics open across the country to 90.
 
Three existing state-funded urgent care services in Warrnambool, Sunshine and Warragul have now transitioned to the Albanese Government’s Medicare Urgent Care Clinic network.
 
A further nine new Medicare Urgent Care Clinics in Victoria will be established in 2025-26.
 
These clinics will give more Victorians access to high quality and free walk-in urgent health care.
 
Labor’s Medicare Urgent Care Clinics have already seen more than 1.7 million presentations since the first sites opened in June 2023, including over 360,000 presentations to Victorian Medicare Urgent Care Clinics.
 
All Medicare Urgent Care Clinics are open extended hours, seven days a week, with no appointment needed, and all patients are fully bulk billed.
 
These three clinics are taking pressure off local hospitals, including the Warrnambool Base Hospital, Sunshine Hospital and West Gippsland Healthcare Group.
 
Over 50 per cent of presentations to Medicare Urgent Care Clinics in Victoria have been outside standard business hours, which means the clinics are filling an important gap in services across extended hours and over the weekend.
 
And with over one in four visits treating a young person under 15, Victorian Medicare Urgent Care Clinics are giving families timely health care and peace of mind.