Medicare Locals: A model for primary health care integration?

Abstract

The first tranche of Medicare Locals (MLs) was established in July 2011 as part of the Australian Government’s health care reform agenda. Nineteen proposals were accepted from Divisions of General Practice (DGP) to establish MLs, with an additional 18 established from January 2012, and a further 24 from July 2012. MLs are charged with improving the health care system’s responsiveness to the primary health care (PHC) needs of the population in their area. In order to achieve this, MLs will work in partnership with the Local Hospital Networks (LHNs) being established in each region by State and Territory Governments. One of the five objectives of MLs is improving the patient journey through developing integrated and coordinated services.