The fund is nothing more than a rebadging exercise in the hope people might think it is a new policy. And it’s being used to airbrush public hospitals out of the Medicare picture.
Labor needs to convincingly discredit the 2017 budget to the point that the government cannot use it to help restore its standing in the eyes of voters.
The budget was extraordinary in many ways. It is an abandonment of restraint on taxes by a liberal government. It is nakedly populist and it also acknowledges that government debt can be productive.
Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt has asked the Medicare review taskforce to consider increasing the number of subsidised mental health sessions for those with eating disorders. Why is that necessary?
In twin speeches to the National Press Club, Labor leader Bill Shorten said bulk-billing rates are falling, while Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said bulk-billing is at record levels. Who was right?
The problems with Centrelink’s data-matching system stem from reconciling datasets held by different agencies. What if we used a blockchain to create a single source of data?
Using intellectual property laws to try to shut down Mark Rogers’ ‘Save Medicare’ website shows how these laws serve to restrict free speech and advance government privatisation agendas.
Double-digit premium increases are leading to an outcry that the Affordable Care Act is not working, yet parts of it are. Here’s what works, and ideas on how to fix what doesn’t.
Shadow minister for health and medicare Catherine King said under this government, average out-of-pocket costs for GP visits are up by almost 20%. Is that true?
The clinical committee reviewing obstetrics services for the federal government’s Medicare review said suicide is one of the leading causes of maternal death in Australia. Is that true?
For real reform to Medicare’s fee-for-service payments model, we need to look for more innovative solutions to how we pay for health care. These can be found in an unlikely place: the United States.
The government must do more to deliver a 21st-century health system – not just to improve its standing with voters but to meet the health needs of all Australians.
Health policy was an important factor in the election outcome, but one of the most important issues in the health sector – the impact of out-of-pocket costs – was mostly ignored.
Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne