Rural tax concessions urged
June 7, 2010
THE Pharmaceutical Society says
a government decision which will
see rural incentive payments for
doctors not subject to 46.5% PAYE
tax should also be extended to
pharmacists working in rural and
regional Australia.
PSA President Warwick Plunkett
said the announcement was clear
recognition of the importance of
incentives in attracting health
professionals to rural areas.
“However we would urge the
Government to extend the scope of
its incentive programs and tax
concessions to other health
professionals like pharmacists who
are also critical to the health needs
of rural populations,” he said.
Plunkett said that there are
already regulatory obstacles to
attracting and keeping pharmacists
in rural areas, and these will only
be compounded if one sector of the
health profession receives
preferential treatment.
“The Government’s health reform
agenda puts heavy emphasis on
primary health care and preventive
health and the teams who provide
these services to work closely
together to deliver better health
outcomes for all Australians.
“It creates an imbalance if one
member of the team, the doctor,
gets tax concessions while other
members of the team may not
receive any such benefit,” he added.
Plunkett said attracting health
workers to the regions where they
are greatly needed requires an
even-handed approach to
incentives, “and this is not what we
are witnessing at the moment.”
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