It’s sickening. Last night, the Abbott government announced that it will charge bulk-billing patients $7 every time they see their GP.

The “Sick Tax” will hit those who can least afford to pay -- poor and chronically ill patients. They’ll have to cough up more than $1.4 billion extra every year.

It’s a step on the way to a US-style healthcare system where the poor simply can’t afford to go to the doctor. And the only thing it will achieve is making healthcare more expensive down the track -- because preventable illnesses that could have been treated easily will turn into more serious conditions, and people will be forced into emergency departments.

Tell the government to urgently reverse the Sick Tax -- it won’t work, and it’s unfair.

This is the start of the privatization of our healthcare system, towards a US system dominated by big, corporate health interests. Right now, Australia’s healthcare system is the envy of countries around the world. It looks after the most vulnerable members of society, and we already contribute to Medicare in each and every pay packet through our tax system. But the Abbott government is undoing the work of decades.

Today, 10-15% of people defer going to a doctor because of the cost. Inflicting financial pain on poor and chronically ill people to discourage them from visiting the doctor is draconian -- and it will dramatically drive up the number of people avoiding visits to their GP.

Once these changes are entrenched, they’ll be almost impossible to reverse. That’s why we need to push back urgently against this disastrous fee, and protect the future of free universal healthcare in Australia. The Howard government was forced to back down from similar changes in the face of public outrage -- we can do it again this time.

Tell the Abbott government to stop taxing the poor and chronically ill -- end the Sick Tax.