Media Release

AMSA celebrates the launch of the Commonwealth Prac Payment (CPP) scheme,a means-tested payment that will help support students through full-timeplacement. Despite this, AMSA is deeply disappointed that medical students, andmany other students undergoing mandatory placement, have been excluded.Medical students are particularly impacted by placement poverty, with the highestnumber of mandatory placement hours, placements located across…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) questions the launch of Queensland University of Technology’s (QUT) new medical school.  The Labor Government and QUT have announced the planned opening of a new undergraduate medical school in Queensland. The QUT Doctor of Medicine program will aim to launch in 2027 but has yet to be accredited by…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) objects to the failure of the 2025-2026 Australian Federal Budget to take into consideration key issues in the health workforce.  “The future doctors we need most are being priced out…students from backgrounds that need the most support are more likely to work rurally, in lower socioeconomic areas and in…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) strongly commends the bipartisan commitment to investing $8.5billion into Medicare and general practice (GP), but warns that increasing Commonwealth Supported Places (CSPs) will not fill workforce gaps.  Data gathered by the Medical Deans Australia and New Zealand shows a declining interest in general practice as a career. In 2020,…

“As future doctors, we are smart, observant and can clearly see this for what it is – a political attack upon a marginalised population that kicks down at vulnerable young people. ‘To do no harm’ , does not mean ‘to do no treatment’. Politically driven action that disproportionately targets minorities will never have a place…

The Australian Medical Student Association (AMSA) strongly supports the World Health Organization’s recognition that abortion is a critical component of reproductive healthcare. We are deeply concerned by recent reports that some Australian hospitals had banned or restricted access to abortion services, thus undermining patients’ right to access safe and legal healthcare. “It is a shameful…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) has called on the Federal Government to urgently address the issue of placement poverty during its opening statement at the Senate Inquiry into the Universities Accord (Student Support and Other Measures) Bill. Representing 18,500 medical students across 23 medical schools, AMSA highlighted the significant financial hardships faced by medical…

Charles Darwin University (CDU) will soon take a significant step in addressing the healthcare needs of the Northern Territory with the establishment of the CDU Menzies Medical Program. Beginning in 2025, the CDU School of Medicine will admit 20 students into its inaugural cohort, followed by 40 further students in 2026. While the program is…

Diet-related diseases such as heart disease and diabetes are rapidly increasing in burden on the Australian population. This trend is driven by changes in dietary patterns towards nutrient-poor and processed foods. Australia has implemented a variety of food labelling standards to help inform and empower consumers to make healthier dietary choices.  A key part of…

Disability in medicine is under-represented. As of 2018, 1 in 6 Australians have a disability – constituting 4.4 million individuals. In 2021, 4,153 students commenced a medical degree. The prevalence of disability in Australian medical students remains low, at less than 2%, when compared to similar programs worldwide.  The Australian Medical Students’ Society (AMSA)  believes…

The Victorian government has launched a new inquiry into women’s pain, but there is nothing new about the gender pain gap. Rampant medical misogyny is deeply entrenched in how medicine is taught and practised. It is time to change this.  The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA), the peak representative body for over 18,000 medical students…

The Australian Federal Government’s hypocritical decision to exclude questions about LGBTQIASB+ Australians from the 2026 census contradicts its commitment to “include LGBTIQ+ Australians in the consultation and planning process for the 2026 Census; and… ensure that the 2026 Census gathers relevant data on LGBTIQ+ Australians”. Omitting these questions will harm LGBTQIASB+ health outcomes by preventing…

Better Together 2024 was Australia’s sixth national LGBTQASB+ conference hosted by the health promotion charity The Equality Project. It brought together health professionals and community organisations to explore pressing issues facing the LGBTQASB+ movement in the nation. “Our mission is to create spaces for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, Queer and Asexual communities, organisations, advocates,…

The Australian federal government has launched the $40 million campaign, Consent Can’t Wait, to encourage parents to communicate to children about consent for sex.   It comes in the wake of the alarming incidence of sexual violence in Australia, with 1 in 5 women and 1 in 16 men in Australia reporting previous experience of…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) commends the Federal Budget’s key investments into relieving student debt, establishing women’s health services and increasing mental health and suicide prevention services. However, AMSA continues to urge for greater investment in creating a diverse healthcare workforce, making the medical degree affordable and supporting medical students from low-SES and rural…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association welcomes the Australian Government’s $925.2 million funding commitment over the next five years to help address violence against women. This announcement comes following a surge in gender-based violence across the nation. The Australian Government called for an emergency National Cabinet Meeting this week, following tens of thousands of protesters demanding…

Australia put forward its first submission to the International Planetary Health Report Card (PHRC). The PHRC is an international student-driven initiative that evaluates planetary health education in medical schools and tracks institutional progress over time. This ensures the sharing of knowledge globally to help all universities improve together and to assist in mitigating the environmental…

The Australian Social Prescribing Institute of Research and Education (ASPIRE) hosted a Canberra roundtable marking world Social Prescribing Day. Dozens of healthcare and welfare organisations attended to call for investment and integration of social prescribing into primary healthcare. “Social prescribing charts a new way forward for healthcare that better connects patients with community services and…

A legislated duty of care to current and future generations is a step in the right direction to safeguard the rights, health and wellbeing of individuals in the face of an ongoing climate crisis, the Australian Medical Student Association told the Senate committee in evidence this week. The Duty of Care Bill, introduced by independent…

AMSA believes that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities with a direct platform in Parliament to influence legislative decision will lead to policies that better and more effectively address the specific health needs and concerns of these communities. “AMSA stands by any and all actions that strive to elevate the voices of Aboriginal and Torres…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association welcomes the Federal Government’s $75.75 million funding toward the John Flynn Prevocational Doctor Program (JFPDP) for states and the Northern Territory to deliver rural primary care rotations for hospital-based prevocational doctors. “This funding will be critical in supporting and enhancing the accessibility for a new generation of junior doctors to…

MDA National’s policy change to exclude cover for doctors initiating gender affirming hormonal treatment for under 18 year-olds sets a harmful precedent for the future of trans and gender diverse healthcare, and perpetuates the treatment inaccessibility and healthcare inequities currently faced by trans and gender diverse patients. As such, the Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA)…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) and Medical Deans of Australia and New Zealand (Medical Deans) welcome the Australian Government’s investment into mental health first aid (MHFA) training for medical students, as a key step in supporting the wellbeing of the nation’s future doctors. “Our students have told us how this training helps them learn…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) welcomes and commends the Federal Budget’s key investments into primary healthcare, with the focus on disadvantaged and vulnerable populations, however, effective primary healthcare workforce planning remains unaddressed, jeopardising the nation’s future health outcomes. Healthcare workforce “We strongly welcome the $4.5 million in funding into the single employer model trials…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) recognises recreational vaping as one of Australia’s greatest public health crises and supports the move toward stronger regulation, noting these should be backed up with strong preventive public health strategies on the ground. AMSA welcomes and commends the measures taken by Minister Butler’s office regarding the regulation of vaping…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) welcome the Government’s new investment into 20 specialised endometriosis and pelvic pain clinics across Australia which will provide targeted clinical diagnostics and management of the growing yet under-addressed burden of pelvic-related conditions nation-wide. Over 10% of people with uteruses are affected with endometriosis by their early 40s1 however diagnosis…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) stands with the Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS) and leading national bodies calling on the federal government to adopt the priority recommendations of the Economic Inclusion Advisory Committee and increase the income support rate in the May 2023 Federal Budget. “The alarming and worsening cost of living is…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) strongly supports the Government’s $220m funding into general practice grants for digital health and infection prevention, but warns that without accessibility measures for Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations (ACCHOs) and rural and remote GPs, the funding may only serve to widen current health disparities. “With rural and remote communities…

The Australian Medical Students Association (AMSA) urges all state and territory governments to follow the lead of the ACT and introduce intersex rights legislation. During Sydney WorldPride Human Rights Conference, Chief Minister Andrew Barr announced the ACT Government will introduce a historic bill to protect intersex people against unnecessary and permanent ‘normalising’ medical procedures until…

Australian medical students firmly condemn the Australian Government’s 10-year reinstatement of offshore immigration detention in Nauru following its expiration in October 2022 due to grave and ongoing concerns for the basic health and human rights of all asylum seekers inside. “This move from the Australian government perpetuates an inhumane system of torture and detention enforced…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) and Queensland Medical Student Council (QLDMSC) call upon the federal government and Australian medical schools to take immediate action in long-term evidence-based solutions to address Australia’s intensifying rural doctor shortages in light of the emerging maternity care crisis in regional and remote Queensland. Regional and rural communities in Queensland…

On March 3rd 2023, Australian medical students will join forces with thousands of activists for the Global Climate Strike occurring simultaneously in nine locations across all states in Australia. “As the future doctors of Australia, we are striking for the health of all our future patients and for the planet.” said Mikaela Misso, AMSA Code…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) today condemned the Taliban for its oppressive ban on women attending universities and schools. AMSA President, Tish Sivagnanan, said, “Education is a fundamental human right, and preventing women from accessing it has serious and multifaceted impacts on Afghan society, including on the healthcare system.” In response to this violation of human…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) wholeheartedly commends the new single-employer GP training pilot model in Tasmania as a critical step toward alleviating the alarming shortage of doctors throughout rural Australia. “The single-employer model is a crucial reform that can help draw junior doctors towards rural areas currently in dire need of better access to…

At a time when Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people continue to face systemic inequities and marginalisation, AMSA firmly calls for an end to the celebration of January 26th — a day that memorialises the colonisation and dispossession of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander land, peoples and communities. “Viewing colonisation as an isolated event of…

The Australian Medical Students Association (AMSA) welcomes the Victorian Labor Party’s election commitment to spend $32 million to incentivise medical graduates to become GPs. “We are pleased to see the state government propose a package to provide $30,000 top-up payments for first-year general practitioner trainees. As medical graduates transition from hospital training into general practice,…

The National Union of Students (‘NUS’), Australian Law Students’ Association (‘ALSA’) and the Australian Medical Students’ Association (‘AMSA’) have joined forces to demand the higher education sector to take strong measures to address discrimination experienced by people with disability in Australia.  The joint position statement and research report from ALSA, AMSA, & NUS — titled…

The Australian Medical Students Association (AMSA) has released a report titled: Medical Student Interest in General Practice – Reversing the Trend: Government, Universities and General Practice Colleges. This report is following a Roundtable held by AMSA on the 11th of October which was attended by all major stakeholders in medical education, health workforce, medical advocacy and…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) calls for the Iranian government to respect freedom of expression and protect the rights of all people, including women, within their nation. A few weeks ago, a 22-year-old Iranian woman was brutally arrested and assaulted for not wearing the hijab properly. The force used during her arrest resulted in her death,…

A leading expert in sex development and gender dysphoria has made the first public apology by a medical doctor in Australia for harmful medical treatments imposed on children with intersex variations.  Paediatric endocrinologist and academic in intersex variations, Dr Jacky Hewitt made the apology at a global conference of medical students organised by the Australian…

The Australian Medical Students Association (AMSA) calls for medical schools and healthcare systems across the nation to actively support students and professionals with disabilities. Considering almost 20% of Australians have reported to have a disability [1], the current healthcare systems are lacking the protocols and resources to adequately address the various challenges encountered by medical…

Thousands of medical students across Australia have flocked over the past two months to be part of one of the country’s biggest blood donation drives.  President of the Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA), Jasmine Davis stated: “Our annual drive, affectionately known as the Vampire Cup, is a time students can roll up their sleeves and save lives.” The…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) is extremely disappointed by the recent comments made by members of the federal government regarding the trans and gender diverse community. AMSA expresses deep concern regarding stigmatising representations of gender affirming care in political debate and the disregard for the mental health of trans and gender diverse communities. “Gender…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) strongly opposes the Group of Eight Universities’ recommendation for the incoming Government to fund an additional 1,000 medical student Commonwealth Supported Places (CSPs). “The simplistic suggestion that increasing medical student numbers is a solution to the multi-faceted problems facing healthcare is false and irresponsible. Having more medical students will not fix the…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) opposes the Federal Budget announcement of introducing 80 new medical Commonwealth Supported Places (CSPs) at rural campuses. “What this announcement represents is the Government taking the easy way out. It is a missed opportunity of CSP redistribution, whereby they could have taken city-based places and provided them to rural…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) calls for a ceasefire in the Ukraine and Russian conflict.As Australia’s future medical workforce, we stand with the international medical student community and echo their calls for peace to be restored in Ukraine.  “Every human being has the right to live in peace. War only brings pain, suffering and…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) is calling out “inadequate” curricula in the area of sexual health in their University-level medical training.  AMSA says medical students around Australia have spent the past month attending online webinars – created by other medical students – centred on sexual and reproductive health, gender and sexuality, following complaints that…

In a letter written by AMSA and endorsed by twenty leading health organisations, including RACGP, ACRRM, headspace and the Black Dog Institute, the health workforce urge politicians to oppose discriminatory One Nation legislation that has recently been endorsed by the NSW Parliament Legislative Council Education Committee. The Bill would prohibit schools from teaching that trans people…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) calls upon the Australian Government to undertake an independent review of the Bonded Medical Program (BMP) and its efficacy as a rural workforce retention strategy. The BMP and its related Bonded Medical Scheme (BMS) and Medical Rural Bonded Scholarship (MRBS) offers prospective students a Commonwealth Supported Place at an…

Medical students join young people across Australia in calling on the Federal Government to establish more ambitious and sustainable measures to address the climate crisis. At 16 rallies across the nation recently, medical students have demonstrated their desire for greater meaningful, sustainable mitigation of climate change. Delegations of medical students, organised by the Australian Medical…

Australian medical students implore all sides of Parliament to make stronger commitments to Australia’s future.  “It was disappointing to observe a lack of leadership from the major parties on some of the biggest issues faced by young Australians,” said Ms Sophie Keen, President of the Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA).  “Heavily publicised budget items such…

Australian medical students are disappointed by the lack of Federal investment in climate action and Australian universities. “This Federal Budget fails to recognise that climate change is the largest public health emergency of our time.” said Ms Sophie Keen, President of the Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA).  “There are a multitude of climate change associated…

The Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) calls upon the Northern Territory Government to urgently reconsider their plans to allow a Dan Murphy’s superstore to be built next to electively dry communities in Darwin. Despite being rejected twice by the NT Liquor Commission, Woolworths-owned Endeavour Drinks Group continues to move forward with plans to construct a…

On the 28th of March, medical students across Australia will march to demand fairer treatment and equal rights for refugees and those seeking asylum. This years’ Palm Sunday Rally combines a nation-wide virtual rally with in-person, state specific rallies.  “Every day, refugees and asylum seekers experience the brutal psychological and physical effects of indefinite detention,’…

Content warning: Contains discussion of sexual harassment and assault. Following weeks of inaction, the Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) calls for the establishment of a government inquiry into the recent rape allegations surrounding Federal Parliament, in addition to an independent inquiry into the prevalence of sexual assault and harassment within parliament. Recent reports emerged alleging…

Medical students have called on the Australian government to act with leadership and dignity by ceasing annual Australia Day celebrations on the 26th of January.   “Tomorrow marks two-hundred and thirty-three years of dispossession and degradation of First Nations peoples, cultures and Country,” Sophie Keen, President of the Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA), said today.  “Continued…

Medical students implore the Federal Government to commit to more substantive efforts to actualise a country that is “one and free”.  The recent announcement by the government to remove the word “young” in the national anthem is in recognition of Australia’s 60,000-year-strong Indigenous history. At minimum, this acknowledgement of First Nations peoples should be extended…