cohealth is a vital community health service that has been a pillar of our community for decades. It provides free, wrap-around health services for more than 12,500 community members, including disadvantaged and vulnerable people who would otherwise not have access to health services. In October 2025 they announced they would have to close services at Collingwood, Fitzroy and Kensington due to lack of funding.

Community pressure forced the government to offer a temporary funding reprieve, but our community health centres need sustainable ongoing funding that recognises the unique role it plays in delivering complex health care. If cohealth doesn’t have funding confirmed by the end of April they’ll have to start wrapping up services again.

Can you call the Health Minister and tell them why they need to fund cohealth for good?

Call: 

Victorian Minister for Health Ingrid Stitt (03) 9096 8587

Federal Health Minister Mark Butler: (02) 6277 7220

Funding for community health is a joint responsibility of state and federal governments. For years they have known that community healthcare was underfunded and they’ve ignored calls to better fund these services.

The federal funding model for bulk-billing under Medicare is not appropriate for the complex, time-consuming services that community health centres provide to vulnerable patients. We need the federal government to introduce a sustainable model to fund our invaluable community health sector.

On top of that, the state government need to provide infrastructure funding to keep cohealth in Collingwood.

Call now to save cohealth for good. After you’ve called, we’d love to know via the form below.

Let us know what the Minister said:

This form has 7 questions: name, which minister you contacted, how you contacted them, what you said, their response, your email, your postcode