The government, last week, softened cutbacks to the Better Access program.

Under the Better Access initiative, GPs can help people experiencing mental illness to access Medicare rebates for sessions with a psychologist.

The Gillard government last year reduced the number of subsidised consultations from 18 to 10.

The Minister for Mental Health Mark Butler has now reinstated six services.

However, extra services can only be used under “exceptional circumstances” for a transitional period to December 31 this year.

Mr Butler said the transitional period would provide sufficient time for new mental health services to build capacity and effectively respond to people with more complex needs.

But Ballarat Community Health chief executive Robyn Reeves said the new arrangements were not in place and there was no guarantee of the timing.

“The 10 sessions are very often not sufficient to address the needs of the patients,” Ms Reeves said.

“There are very limited public service counsellors available and to pay for private counselling is very expensive especially for those on a fixed income.”

Affording private counsellors, she said, would be even more difficult for a lot of people in the Ballarat and Grampians area.

“Ballarat and the Grampians has a significant proportion of the population on low income,” Ms Reeves said.

Historically mental health services, she said, were underfunded across the country.

“Reducing expenditure that makes a difference in an area that has been ignored is not the right way to go,” Ms Reeves said.

Alliance for Better Access spokesman Ben Mullings said they would not be satisfied until there was a full restoration of services to their previous level prior to the 2011 budget cuts.

“The new upper limit is still a cut to psychological services,” Mr Mullings said.

“By December, the government plans to cut the program down to 10 sessions all over again.”

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