THE State government needs to recognise the policy measures required for rural and remote healthcare are distinct from urban needs, according to the National Rural Health Alliance (NRHA).
"Whoever wins must listen and consult with people, rather than impose things from Macquarie Street," said NRHA chief executive Gordon Gregory.
There are workforce shortages and the more remote the community the more the shortages are," he said.
"The more specialised the service is, the greater the shortage - but that is to be expected in a smaller community.
"There is no oncologist in Wilcannia, but financial systems need to recognise that a person in Wilcannia has an equal need to a person in Sydney to see one."
Mr Gregory said the distribution for Aboriginal health care specialists as well as mental and oral health professionals "was even worse than that of doctors".
Primary healthcare networks were lacking in the bush, Mr Gregory said.
"Diagnosis occurs later, which means conditions are further advanced and at the distance to clinical care compounds the problem.
NRHA said cancer patients in remote areas were 35 per cent more likely to die within five years of diagnosis than metropolitan patients.
