Towards health equity through an adult health check for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people

[Extract] An important Australian initiative that sets an international precedent We've got major problems at a really early age... to do these elderly health assessments, are they going to dig us up? We're dead and buried by then. We might as well set up a clinic next to the cemetery.¹ These poignant words were spoken by Dr Puggy Hunter, recipient of the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission's Human Rights Medal in 2001 and former Chair of the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (NACCHO), who passed away at the age of 50 years in 2001. He made these observations after the federal government's launch of the Enhanced Primary Care Package in November 1999. Among other things, the package was designed to assist general practitioners to provide preventive care for Australians over the age of 75 years through Medicare Benefits Schedule rebates. For Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people the age limit was lowered to over 55 years.² As 53% of Aboriginal men and 41% of Aboriginal women die before reaching the age of 50 years,³ representatives from NACCHO,⁴ general practice groups and the Australian Medical Association expressed concern that relatively few Aboriginal people would benefit from these rebates. Moreover, an evaluation in 2003 found that few Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people over 55 years had accessed the Enhanced Primary Care rebates.⁵