Healthy Horizons’ blueprint for new national rural health plan

The peak lobby group for rural and remote health says a national rural health plan is essential if the Rudd Government is to deliver on its promise to improve health outcomes for Australia’s rural communities.

Gordon Gregory, executive director of the National Rural Health Alliance, says many of the pieces are already in place for such a plan.

“The Alliance believes the best way forward on rural and remote health will be to endorse a collaborative redesign of Healthy Horizons 2003-2007,” he said.

Healthy Horizons is the current national framework for rural and remote health. It has the major advantage of having been jointly agreed by Commonwealth, State and Territory Governments and by the Alliance on behalf of rural health consumers and providers.

“People in rural and remote areas have been well served by Healthy Horizons 2003-2007, but it is essentially a passive reporting template, without expenditure or outcome targets. Incorporating such targets into the new plan will be in line with the Prime Minister’s call for evidence-based policy,” Mr Gregory said.

The Alliance is urging Federal and State/Territory health departments to move quickly to develop and endorse a revised Healthy Horizons as the new national rural health plan.