RACGP Pushes for Program to Support City GPs Working in Rural Areas
06 Mar 2026
The program would pay for travel and training so metropolitan doctors can spend four weeks each year practising in rural Australia.
The college is asking the government to invest $2.8 million each year to support the program and cover travel costs for GPs going to rural towns.
According to the RACGP, the plan could provide around 600 extra weeks of GP care each year for rural communities.
RACGP Rural Chair Michael Clements said the program would match the needs of rural clinics with the interests of city-based GPs.
He said doctors could also receive extra training, including chronic disease care, reproductive health services like IUD insertions, and ADHD diagnosis and management.
The RACGP estimates the program could save about $4.4 million a year by reducing the need for locum doctors.
RACGP President Michael Wright said the proposal was discussed with MPs in Canberra during GPs@Parliament, and the response so far has been positive.
https://www1.racgp.org.au/
Source: RACGP News
