The Health Care Homes program will see a general practice or Aboriginal Medical Service operate as a healthcare hub to coordinate care for people managing chronic and complex conditions.

Eligible patients will be given a tailored care plan across primary and acute settings aimed at keeping them out of hospital.

Services will be delivered from July next year until mid-2019.

Primary Health Tasmania chief executive Phil Edmondson said it was pleasing to see Tasmania included among the 10 Primary Health Network areas chosen for the trial.

Almost one-fifth of Tasmanians live with three or more chronic health conditions, 16 per cent of the population is older than 65 and 19 per cent of the state receives rent assistance from the government.

“We have high rates of chronic disease and an ageing population against a backdrop of significant socioeconomic disadvantage,” Mr Edmondson said. 

“Our significant direct involvement in programs aimed at better coordinating and connecting care for Tasmanians with chronic conditions – and our ongoing engagement with health care providers through those programs – gives us a good grounding for understanding what’s involved in supporting roll-out of new models of care locally.”

The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners has welcomed the trial but said the $120 million investment represented a shuffling of healthcare expenditure.

“This is in reality $21 million from the Practice Incentive Program re-directed to infrastructure, training and evaluation, and $90 million of funding for some MBS chronic disease management items being cashed out of Medicare,” college president Frank R Jones said.

“In reality, the practices involved in the trial across Australia will be expected to provide more services, with the same amount of funding.

“In order to succeed, the trial must be properly resourced to support GPs and their teams to take on even more responsibility and to keep people out of hospital.”

Expressions of interest will open late this year asking practices to become Health Care Homes.

Up to 65,000 patients are expected to benefit nationally.