For many people living in regional and rural Victoria, accessing cancer treatment means travelling long distances. The financial burden of this travel is substantial, often involving significant fuel, accommodation and out-of-pocket costs, and often unsustainable for those needing treatment, making it prohibitive to many needing treatment far from home.
Cancer Council Victoria is calling for improvements to the Victorian Patient Transport Assistance Scheme (VPTAS), which provides partial reimbursement for travel and accommodation for people who must travel more than 100km for specialist medical care. With no substantial updates since 2015, and reimbursement rates failing to keep pace with rising costs, improvements are needed to ensure the scheme meets the needs of the Victorian community.
In 2025, Cancer Council Victoria re-established the VPTAS Alliance, bringing together 15 cancer, chronic disease, patient and carer support organisations to advocate for urgent reform to the VPTAS. Together, we are calling for an increase to reimbursement rates and a public review of the scheme.
So that we could understand how people use VPTAS, we conducted a survey of 415 regional and rural Victorians affected by cancer about their experience. Ninety-one per cent of the people we heard from faced out-of-pocket costs when travelling for treatment. Nearly half said these costs significantly impacted their finances, sometimes causing them to miss treatment.
“People already dealing with the stress of a cancer diagnosis shouldn’t have to choose between treatment and everyday expenses,” said Amanda Piper, Head of Cancer Strategy.
“The current subsidy rates simply don’t reflect the real cost of travelling long distances for life-saving treatment and care.”
Forty-four per cent of respondents had never heard of VPTAS. Key barriers for using VPTAS include the 100km travel threshold, limited treatment types covered, and burdensome application process. Updating the scheme’s eligibility criteria will help ensure all Victorians have equal access to treatment and support, regardless of where they live.
Regional Victorians are 10 per cent more likely to be diagnosed with, and 14 per cent more likely to die from cancer than those living in major Victorian cities1, highlighting the urgent need to improve access to treatment.
Updating VPTAS is a practical, achievable step towards reducing the emotional, physical and financial burden of cancer for all Victorians.
1Cancer in Victoria 2024, the Victorian Cancer Registry.