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Health will be the main priority for federal, state and territory leaders as the prime minister plans to overhaul Australia's ailing Medicare system.

Anthony Albanese met with premiers and chief ministers for the first national cabinet meeting of the year which he described as collegial and collaborative.

During the meeting, leaders discussed the findings of a review by the Medicare task force on measures to improve healthcare affordability and accessibility, support people with chronic health conditions and take pressure off hospitals.

Mr Albanese said he would act on the recommendations from the report.

"We all understand the challenge ... for improving our primary health care networks, how that interacts with the hospital system and there's absolutely a commitment to work on policy outcomes as the starting point," he told reporters in Canberra.

"The key going forward is to better integrate the systems so that patients (have) better health care and we know that the earlier the care is provided, the cheaper that care will be."

The prime minister said better policy, not necessarily more funding, was key to fixing issues in the Medicare system.

"We all agree ... part of the issues are people turning up at emergency departments because they don't have other options. We need to improve primary health care (and) we need to improve access to GP services," he said.

"The task is to continue to talk about the bigger picture reform but also not sit back and wait. We're investing right now."

Mr Albanese pointed to recent announcements in Tasmania and Western Australia to improve access to primary health care.

NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet said more money wasn't necessarily the solution to improving the health system.

"Let's put patients at the centre of that system, integrate the networks in a better and more efficient way and then work out the funding arrangements off the back of it," he said.

"If you start with funding, you won't get the outcomes."

South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas earlier said ideas such as pharmacists being able to prescribe medications for common ailments should be considered.

"I don't think we should be discouraging organisations ... from constructive suggestions," he said.

"Provided they are clinically safe, I think there should be an appetite to embrace new, innovative ideas that keep people out of our hospitals."

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews agreed the problems with Medicare were not all about money and needed a national approach rather than each state working in isolation.

"The most important thing here is that good ideas and common sense reform drives this first and foremost and we can fund it appropriately after that," he said.

"We can, out of this meeting, have a shared common purpose and a statement that says health reform is top of the list for us, both as individual jurisdictions and as a national cabinet.

"It all starts with the acknowledgement that this system is broken and we can do so much better."

© AAP 2023

The Brisbane Heat have stormed into the Big Bash final thanks to a batting masterclass from fast bowler Michael Neser that helped upset the Sydney Sixers by four wickets.

Thursday night's win caps a remarkable turnaround from the Heat, who sat last on the BBL ladder in the second week of January before winning seven of eight games.

Brisbane will meet the Perth Scorchers at Optus Stadium on Saturday in their second grand final appearance.

Without their India-bound talisman Steve Smith, the Sixers sputtered to 9-116 on a tricky SCG wicket.

But missing their own Test stars Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne and Matt Renshaw, a Heat win was far from assured and they threatened to bottle the chase by losing 3-10 and then falling to 5-56.

With the game on an even keel late, Neser (48 not out) hit Hayden Kerr for four consecutive boundaries in an over that defined the game and sealed one of the great BBL upsets with 10 balls to spare.

"I was just fortunate that that came off," Neser told reporters.

"I normally am quite nervous but it was potentially the last game of the season, so I just thought, it's all or nothing really."

Batters have struggled at the SCG all summer long and when the hosts elected to bat, Brisbane's Matthew Kuhnemann (3-17) and Spencer Johnson (3-28) posted the best figures of their BBL careers.

After catching Kurtis Patterson (19) to break a promising opening partnership, spinner Kuhnemann claimed out-of-sorts opener Josh Philippe (16) and skipper Moises Henriques (four) in the space of two overs.

The quick dismissals forced the Sixers back into their shell and they never got going again, managing 2-8 in the power surge and failing to hit a six all night.

Johnson denied Dan Christian (seven) a fairytale in his last game at the SCG with a length ball that careered into the wicket, before he had the Sixers' last recognised batter Hayden Kerr (16) out caught and bowled.

Daniel Hughes, the Sixers' odd man out for most of the summer, top-scored with 23.

"We just seemed to take wickets at the right time and their batters didn't seem to get a roll on," Neser said.

The Heat found the boundary more easily than the Sixers early on, announcing their intention when Josh Brown hit Steve O'Keefe for six on consecutive deliveries.

One of three replacements for the Heat's Test players, Sam Heazlett tried to sneak a single on a misfield but found himself run out to trigger a collapse. In the space of 21 balls, the Heat also lost Brown (20) and Nathan McSweeney (five), both caught behind by Philippe.

Losing more scalps was the only thing that could thwart the Heat when a run a ball was all that was required and Max Bryant, another of the reinforcements, forged a game-high 30-run partnership with Neser.

Just as they were beginning to pull ahead with the largest partnership of the night, Bryant (11) sent the ball skyward in the power surge and was caught.

But Neser was undeterred and his 16 runs from four balls brought the equation squarely into the Heat's favour.

When he slogged the ball past long on, he had the biggest score of his BBL career.

"(Neser) played a pretty smart innings, which you have to give him credit for," Henriques said.

The Sixers' play-offs campaign came to an end in straight sets after they lost their qualifying final against the Scorchers last week.

"We had two cracks at making the final and unfortunately weren't good enough to take either of them," Henriques said.

"I'm still very, very proud of what we were able to achieve as a team throughout the season."

© AAP 2023

Gold Coast playmaker Tanah Boyd is on the cusp of realising a childhood dream and he has credited veteran playmaker and new signing Kieran Foran for helping him in his quest.

The 22-year-old has been training at halfback for the Titans as he seeks to secure the No.7 jersey in round one of the NRL against Wests Tigers.

Boyd, formerly in the Brisbane Broncos' system, showed what he is made of when given the chance as starting halfback in the last five games of the 2022 season for the Titans after a sequence of games as a utility.

They won three of those matches and Boyd was the best player on the park in the majority of them, thriving as the main man.

His performances were a testament to his class and character after patiently biding his time for a chance.

"I'd been waiting for a while for a crack at seven and knew it was an opportunity I had to take with both hands. I felt like I did that and I took a lot of confidence out of it," Boyd told AAP.

"I've always liked being in control of the team and leading the boys around."

He said training at halfback this pre-season alongside Foran had been a huge boost to his confidence as he fights it out with Toby Sexton for the role.

"It has been massive," he said.

"To finish the year off the way I did last year, and then really invest in it through the pre-season and get the time and reps under my belt has been important.

"Since I came down to the Titans halfback is where I always wanted to play and where I always played growing up.

"Hopefully I get that opportunity. I just want to make it mine now. It is not done yet. I can't wait for trials to show what I can do."

The arrival of 2011 premiership winner and star five-eighth Foran from Manly has been embraced by Boyd who has soaked up his wisdom and analysed why he has been so good. The Titans missed the finals last season and Foran has been signed to get them back up the ladder.

"I love studying and talking about the game and Foz is exactly the same so we've bounced off each other," Boyd said.

"He has been good for the group and wants so much success for the club so I can't wait to hopefully play with him.

"I have always loved the way he takes it to the defensive line in attack and never missing tackles. He is always putting his body on the line."

© AAP 2023