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[1] Podcasts, radio, news, music and more.
[2] Good morning.
[3] Welcome to AM.
[4] It's Monday the 24th of February.
[5] I'm Sabra Lane coming to you from Nipaluna, Hobart.
[6] In a remarkable development, Vladimir Zelensky says he's willing to give up the Ukraine presidency in exchange for peace or membership of NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation.
[7] Ukraine is entering its fourth year of war with Russia, with Moscow launching its largest drone attack at the conflict.
[8] Europe correspondent Catherine Dis filed this report from Kyiv.
[9] Angela Zelizana and her 10 -year -old son Yaroslav were in their home city of Mariupol when Russian tanks rolled in three years ago.
[10] I was scared.
[11] Everything was exploding.
[12] Everything was rumbling.
[13] Yaroslav was again fighting for his life, just days after being cleared of cancer, which he'd battled since he was two years old.
[14] After spending three weeks under occupation, the pair fled to Spain.
[15] But it so happened that when they gave us permission to leave on the 15th of March, we had to go because it was really scary to stay.
[16] They've since returned to Kyiv, only to be caught inside a children's hospital as a missile hit.
[17] It was scary.
[18] It was dark.
[19] Immediately such a panic.
[20] Angela wants the war to end at any cost.
[21] We don't want to see men die because they are also someone's children, someone's parents.
[22] Of course, I would like the borders of Ukraine to remain, but if there is no return, then at least let it end this way.
[23] On the ground in Kiev, America cutting Ukraine out of peace talks with Russia is being seen as nothing short of betrayal, let alone President Trump labelling Vladimir Zelensky a dictator who's done nothing to...
[24] stop the war.
[25] The dramatic turnaround from Ukraine's biggest backer has alarmed European leaders and stoked fears that Kiev will have to sign a peace deal that favours Vladimir Putin.
[26] For soldiers like Viktor Bulaninsky, who fought on the front line, ceding territory to Russia would mean all their efforts were in vain.
[27] I want our territory to be completely liberated from the occupiers.
[28] Even if everything is frozen on the front line, we will still continue to war in a year or two, simply because Russia never keeps to its agreements.
[29] The soldier lost both of his legs when fighting in Chasivyar six months ago.
[30] He was flown to Australia for...
[31] plants and prosthetics after Sydney's Ukrainian community raised the funds.
[32] He'll return in coming weeks to get them fitted.
[33] But for now, he's receiving rehabilitation at this new facility, helping soldiers get back on their feet.
[34] and feel better in this company.
[35] He's now focused on his next ambition.
[36] Now I see my goal in developing new prosthesis for people without legs, bionic ones, more technologically advanced.
[37] For a soldier with lifelong wounds, Victor's remaining positive about what the future holds, even as he worries for Ukraine.
[38] This is Catherine Dyson -Kiev reporting for AM.
[39] Exit polls show Conservative parties have won Germany's national election after a divisive campaign centred around immigration.
[40] The far -right alternative for Germany party is set to become the second biggest force in the country's parliament, doubling its result from the last election.
[41] Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democrats have recorded their worst result.
[42] The vote marks another gain for the far -right in Europe with a recent surge in support in Austria and France.
[43] Bridget Rollison reports from London.
[44] The far -right alternative for Deutschland party was once seen as unelectable.
[45] But the party has surged in the polls off the back of its anti -immigration stance.
[46] Nearly 60 million Germans headed to the polls in its national election today after the centre -left government collapsed in December.
[47] Exit polls forecast a win for the country's opposition Conservatives, with leader Frederick Mertz on track to be the next Chancellor.
[48] But the far -right AFD leader, Elise Feinstein, is also celebrating after the party looks set to double its share of the vote.
[49] We have achieved a historic result.
[50] We have never been stronger in the federal government.
[51] We have become the second strongest force as alternative for Germany.
[52] And we have now firmly established ourselves as a people's party.
[53] The election campaign was dominated by the issue of migration after a string of recent deadly attacks by asylum seekers across the country.
[54] That includes two separate car ramming, stabbings and machete attacks, which have left 13 dead and hundreds injured.
[55] It's an issue the AFD party has seized on.
[56] Dante Riddle is a campaign volunteer for the party.
[57] We're actually the only ones.
[58] who see the crisis coming.
[59] 2015, there were millions of illegal migrants coming to our country.
[60] We were the only ones who made clear that this is going to be problematic because there is no housing.
[61] We will be facing crime.
[62] We will be facing terrorism.
[63] And this was very much preventable.
[64] Germany took in over a million asylum seekers, mainly from Syria and Afghanistan, in 2016.
[65] Ziham Shalabi was one of those.
[66] She fled to the country when the Syrian civil war...
[67] was raging.
[68] Germany's centre -left and centre -right parties have also moved to the right in their rhetoric on migration and borders, worried they could lose votes to the AFD party.
[69] But even if the AFD becomes the second largest force in parliament, it's unlikely to make it to the next government because other mainstream parties have refused to join a coalition, arguing the party's dangerous.
[70] Here's Cornelius Ardebar, who researches the far right at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue.
[71] There seems to be a lack of delivery towards the people.
[72] People since the financial crisis, the migration crisis and then the pandemic, they feel that...
[73] The democracy that they see doesn't deliver for them.
[74] The results likely mean a three -way coalition will be needed to form government and set the stage for protracted talks.
[75] This is Bridget Rollison reporting for AM.
[76] Pope Francis remains in a critical condition.
[77] He sent a message from his hospital bed thanking people for their prayers.
[78] That was read out at Sunday Mass. The Vatican says the Pope's had no further respiratory problems, but blood tests show poor kidney function.
[79] Europe correspondent Zoe Ford reports from Rome.
[80] Outside the Gemelli Hospital in central Rome, a midday vigil to pray for Pope Francis.
[81] As the pontiff rested in the hospital's papal suite on the 10th floor, well -wishers surrounded the statue of the late Pope John Paul II below, lighting candles, singing hymns and leaving balloons printed with Get Well messages.
[82] I just wanted to come here to show solidarity and just to say a prayer and wish him well, to wish him a quick recovery.
[83] We came down to say a prayer for Pope Francis.
[84] We're both from Ireland and we live in Rome.
[85] So we were just...
[86] popped over yes when we arrived here first we used to live over by the vatican so i used to pop down regularly to the ceremonies and i just want to wish him well and i just think he's amazing he's an amazing pope Earlier, a message of thanks from the Pope himself, written sometime in the last few days.
[87] First, words read on his behalf at his usual Sunday prayer in St Peter's Square.
[88] Then, a short statement on social media.
[89] I have recently received many messages of affection, and I have been particularly struck by the letters and drawings from children.
[90] Thank you for your closeness and for the consoling prayers I have received from all over the world.
[91] The 88 -year -old is being treated for pneumonia and chronic bronchitis and has now spent 10 days in hospital.
[92] On Saturday, an update from the Vatican said he was in a critical condition after a prolonged asthma -like respiratory crisis and his prognosis remained guarded.
[93] The update said he was alert but needed a high flow of oxygen and had had blood transfusions.
[94] At Sunday Mass inside St Peter's Basilica, Senior Vatican Official Archbishop Reno Fisicella offered a special prayer for the pontiff.
[95] We feel Pope Francis close to us, even though he's in a hospital bed.
[96] We feel his presence among us, and this compels us to make our prayer even stronger and more intense, so that the Lord may support him in this time of trial and illness.
[97] The Pope has previously asked for openness about his health, which has led to twice -daily public statements from the Vatican.
[98] Supporters are now hanging on every word as they hope and pray the Pontiff pulls through.
[99] This is Mazowie Ford in Rome, reporting for AM.
[100] Whenever the federal election's called, Medicare will be a key part of the campaign.
[101] The Prime Minister made an $8 .5 billion promise yesterday that nine out of ten Australians will be able to see a doctor free by 2030, with bulk billing expanded and doctors given incentives to do it.
[102] Within hours, the coalition had matched the policy.
[103] It's been welcomed by doctors' groups, though.
[104] Some health experts say broader reform is still needed.
[105] Political reporter Pablo Vinales has the story.
[106] The pledges and, along with them, the signs of an imminent election.
[107] Stronger Medicare is at the heart of our government.
[108] And it will be the beating heart of our election campaign.
[109] Anthony Albanese promising nine out of ten GP visits will be bulk billed by 2030.
[110] In other words, free of out -of -pocket expenses.
[111] Injecting $8 .5 billion into Medicare to include expanding incentives GPs currently get for bulk billing children and concession card holders to almost all patients.
[112] Peter Braden is the Director of the Health Program at the Grattan Institute.
[113] I expect that more GPs will see patients for free after these reforms come in.
[114] because the funding they get from government every time they don't charge a fee will increase.
[115] The move was broadly welcomed by the Australian Medical Association and the Royal College of General Practitioners.
[116] While Peter Braden believes it will help those already financially stretched, he says wider reform is needed.
[117] The trend towards more people saying they're skipping care because of cost is a worrying one, and I think that does warrant a policy response, and that makes sense, and obviously bulk billing is a big part of that.
[118] Federal Labor is also promising 400 nursing scholarships and 2 ,000 new GP trainers a year by 2028.
[119] The Australian Primary Healthcare Nurses Association has also welcomed the funding pledge, but the association's chief executive, Ken Griffin, says it overlooks the role nurses play in addressing chronic pressure in the healthcare system.
[120] There are so many ways we could use our nurses better as the largest workforce.
[121] One of them would be in general practice.
[122] Currently, we have a lot of restrictions on what they can do.
[123] because of the funding system that is Medicare.
[124] We need to change the funding system so that nurses can play their full role to keep people healthy and out of hospitals.
[125] Yesterday's pre -election announcement was quickly matched dollar for dollar by the coalition.
[126] Health and Medicare are cornerstone of Labor's re -election campaign.
[127] Anthony Albanese yesterday targeted the opposition leader and his record as a former health minister.
[128] Peter Dutton did more to damage Medicare than any Liberal before him.
[129] A line of attack the opposition leader will have to get used to.
[130] Peter Dutton says it's just a scare campaign, reminiscent of the so -called MediScare campaign in 2016.
[131] We're not cutting health.
[132] We've been very clear about that.
[133] I believe very strongly in general practice.
[134] I believe in providing support to the hospital system, a good balance between public and private.
[135] Opposition leader Peter Dutton ending that report by Pablo Vinales.
[136] Mark Butler is the Federal Health Minister.
[137] Mark Butler, thanks for joining AM.
[138] Morning, Sabra.
[139] The Prime Minister says this election is make or break for Medicare.
[140] The opposition's matched the promise on bulk billing.
[141] Does the government have more to announce on health ahead of polling day or is this it?
[142] No, we'll continue to focus on health because it's so important for the Australian people.
[143] It is at any time, let alone as we continue to recover from a once in a century pandemic.
[144] But yesterday's announcement was the single largest investment in Medicare, probably in its history, certainly in anyone's living memory.
[145] And it will start to turn around that real challenge of affordability that people who don't have a concession card have.
[146] And I know you and I have talked about before.
[147] This bulk billing commitment.
[148] won't start until November and already doctors are expecting patients will assume it starts right now and they're asking them to be patient.
[149] Why wait until November?
[150] Why not start it immediately?
[151] Well, the 1st of November is when the changes to these rebates typically occur.
[152] That gives practices time to update their software.
[153] And we think that that's a pretty quick start to a very, very substantial change in how Medicare operates.
[154] And as I said, for the first time, we'll be giving bulk billing support to all Australians, including those who don't have a concession card.
[155] For the first time, we'll be giving practices an incentive payment in the event that they bulk bill all 100 % of their patients.
[156] So that takes a little bit of time to roll out, but we're not ramping this up.
[157] It all starts on the 1st of November.
[158] The Australian Medical Association's welcomed it, but says that Medicare needs modernising by restructuring the way it works to fund longer consultations for chronic conditions.
[159] Because we are an ageing population as well, the current scheme is not designed to cope with that.
[160] Is the government contemplating that kind of change?
[161] The current structure of Medicare really suits the patient profile of the 1980s and 90s more than it does the patient profile of today.
[162] Someone who is more likely to have complex chronic disease.
[163] So I agree very strongly with the AMA on that.
[164] And we're starting to roll out some programs to structure funding to deliver.
[165] multidisciplinary care that wraps around a patient rather than single episodes of care that really characterised Medicare in decades past.
[166] So I entirely agree with the AMA on that.
[167] We've got a strong challenge to restructure Medicare around a different patient profile, but the burning platform right now for our government is that bulk billing is sliding for people without a concession card, out -of -pocket costs are rising, and more and more Australians are choosing not to go to the doctor.
[168] than they should because of costs.
[169] And that's what we have to address right now.
[170] The National Rural Health Alliance says this new policy will do little to change their reality of failed markets or thin markets.
[171] Is there more help coming for them?
[172] Well, there are more doctors coming to rural Australia, including from overseas markets.
[173] We have very high confidence in the UK, New Zealand, Ireland.
[174] We're fast tracking GPs in from there.
[175] We're fast tracking nurses.
[176] from similar jurisdictions.
[177] And the increase in the bulk billing incentive is far more significant outside of the major cities.
[178] I mean, there are extra loadings for rural practices that mean that really for a non -concessional patient, a standard consult income for a GP now pretty much doubles.
[179] So we've got a very strong focus on rural markets.
[180] But still they're unhappy.
[181] I mean, that's their statement following the release of your policy yesterday.
[182] Yeah, but when we're continuing to work with them on really bespoke solutions, really tailored solutions where there are markets that a general practice, a private general practice just isn't choosing.
[183] to go and set up in.
[184] So we'll continue to work with the Alliance.
[185] If this is the beating heart of Labor's re -election campaign, how are you going to convince voters to vote for Labor?
[186] A new poll out by Resolve this morning shows that your primary vote's at 25%.
[187] And if accurate and repeated on polling day, that means you're headed for a loss.
[188] Yeah, I think there are a couple of polls out today and there'll be many, many more between now and the election, I'm sure.
[189] And I think we've all been clear this is going to be a tight election.
[190] There's a very real chance that Peter Dutton will be the Prime Minister in a couple of months.
[191] I mean, we've seen elections across the world very tight after the five years that people have gone through.
[192] We're under no illusions about that.
[193] But on Medicare, that would be an enormous risk to take with a fellow who is health minister.
[194] They've promised to match your policy.
[195] Yeah, but they promised that in 2013, Sabah.
[196] They promised there'd be no cuts to health and within a few months.
[197] Peter Dutton as health minister tried to cut $50 billion out of public hospitals and abolish bulk billing altogether.
[198] We've seen this film before.
[199] They'll try and neutralise health as a policy because of their record.
[200] And when they come into government, those cuts that Peter Dutton has again promised, but says he won't outline to the Australian people, they'll be back on the table.
[201] And even if you leave that pretty significant historical fact aside, why would you trust the person who created this mess in the first place?
[202] to clean it up because no one can test that the challenge with bulk billing right now traces back to the decision Peter Dutton made.
[203] It traces back to Labor introducing this freeze in 2013.
[204] Well, that's not right, Sabra.
[205] It's not right at all.
[206] In 2013, there was a realignment of indexation to the financial year.
[207] And Labor froze the policy.
[208] I'm sorry, you can't rewrite history.
[209] I'm happy to show you the budget paper, Sabra.
[210] There was a realignment of a few months to...
[211] to ensure that indexation happened on the 1st of July at the beginning of the financial year.
[212] There was no change to yearly indexation under that 2013 budget.
[213] That's a complete misrepresentation.
[214] Peter Dutton then came in, tried to put a GP tax in, and when he couldn't get that through the Senate, actually froze funding.
[215] Didn't shift it by a few months to align with the beginning of the financial year.
[216] He froze it for six years.
[217] We're out of time.
[218] Thanks, Mark Butler, for joining AM.
[219] Thanks, Barbara.
[220] And Mark Butler is the Federal Health Minister.
[221] That's AM for today.
[222] Thanks for your company.
[223] I'm Sabra Lane.
[224] Hi, I'm Sam Hawley, host of the ABC News Daily podcast.
[225] You've heard of IVF, now IVG is on its way.
[226] It's technology for the mass production of eggs and sperm in a lab that in theory would allow three people to have a baby or even just one person.
[227] Today, Dr Alexandra Harvey, a senior research scientist with Melbourne IVF, on the science behind it.
[228] Look for the ABC News daily podcast on the ABC Listener.