Farmers’ little lift in big dry

FARMERS battling drought will not have to trek to town for counselling under new measures to make seeking mental health support easier.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull announced the change, along with $11.4 million for other initiatives supporting the mental wellbeing of farming families and their communities.

Instead of three out of 10 Medicare-supported psychological consultations needing to be in person, rural people can now access all of them over the phone or on Skype.

Mr Turnbull said the Government recognised the dry conditions had taken a mental toll on farming communities.

“These are bleak times and a lot of people find it very hard to cope,” he said at a farm at Trangie in central NSW.

Changing the way people could access support was im- portant as the need to travel to in-person appointments had meant some people had dropped out of counselling.

“A lot of people don’t want to go into town, they don’t have the time to go into town, they’re shy about doing so,” the prime minister said.

“This is very important to improve that mental health support.”

The wellbeing funding is part of a broader $190 million drought relief package.

Eligible drought-affected communities will be able to apply for grants up to $1 million to run mental health programs tailored to their needs.

It is expected that communities will receive between $200,000 and $300,000 each. Primary Health Networks will also get some of the money to help them cope with increasing demand for their mental health services. AAP