Leukaemia Foundation reports ‘postcode penalty’ for regional cancer patients

The Leukaemia Foundation has released a national scorecard highlighting a ‘postcode penalty’ faced by regional Australian cancer patients. This term refers to the significant financial burden placed on individuals living outside major cities who must travel to access specialist medical care.

According to the foundation, the costs include travel, accommodation, and lost wages. In one case, a family relocated from Cairns to Brisbane for leukaemia treatment, incurring an estimated $350,000 in total costs over three years.

The scorecard ranks states and territories based on how well their subsidies cover real-world expenses. South Australia ranked first, with patients able to recoup approximately 70 per cent of accommodation costs. In contrast, Victoria ranked last; its accommodation subsidies cover only an estimated 28 per cent of costs, and its car travel subsidy of 21 cents per kilometre is less than half the estimated real-world cost. The Australian Capital Territory also ranked poorly, placing second-last behind Queensland and New South Wales.