Independent Member for Indi Helen Haines and ACT Independent Senator David Pocock say ending placement poverty for the next generation of Australia’s health workforce is within reach according to costings from the Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) they commissioned.

Dr Haines and Senator Pocock independently commissioned the PBO costings, which show that expanding the Commonwealth Prac Payment Scheme to include medical and allied health students would cost just $290 million over the four years of the forward estimates.

Following strong advocacy from advocates and the crossbench, the federal government commenced the Commonwealth Prac Payment on 1 July 2025 for nursing, midwifery, teaching and social work students.

However, Dr Haines, Senator Pocock together with advocates and other crossbench colleagues are pushing for the payment to be expanded in line with the recommendations of the Universities Accord Final Report, to extend payments to allied health and medical students.

The PBO costings coincide with the release of new survey data from the Health Students Alliance showing 42 per cent of students were going hungry while on placement.

“Unpaid mandatory placements are pushing thousands of students into financial hardship at a time of acute workforce shortages and a cost-of-living crisis,” Dr Haines said.

“These costings show that ending placement poverty is both achievable and affordable.

"Failing to act is a political choice, not a budget constraint.

“At a time of severe health workforce shortages - particularly in rural and regional areas - the government can’t afford to let unpaid placements become the barrier that stops students from completing their degrees.”

Senator Pocock’s PBO costings also modelled the cost of lifting the payment rate from the current $338.60 per week benchmarked to the single Austudy per week rate while undertaking the placement.

“Most Australians have experienced firsthand the impacts from the acute shortage of qualified professionals, from psychologists to dentists to speech pathologists," Senator Pocock said.

Dr Haines and Senator Pocock have partnered with peak body Allied Health Professions Australia to launch an online petition calling on the federal government to expand the Prac Payment Scheme.

Palliative Care Australia (PCA) supports calls to expand the Commonwealth Prac Payment to include medical and allied health students.

PCA national policy director Josh Fear said reducing financial hardship during placements is an important step for building the health workforce Australians rely on, including palliative care services.

“When students are required to complete unpaid placements, it can force real financial stress and it can put completion of training at risk," he said.

“Expanding the Prac Payment to medical and allied health students is a practical, achievable reform that supports equity and strengthens the workforce, particularly in rural and regional areas.”