Australia health care

Australia health care

Just found this and wanted to post it to get responses.

Politics

In Australia, the primary source of income for healthcare provides funds for teaching hospitals.

But here, the primary source is the profit hungry big insurance racket and they don't.
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They have a universal government run scheme called Medicare. It is funded by a levy on wages, like FICA. Like all such schemes it has failed and has become a safety net for the poor, who can wait up to four years for treatment.

Most people buy private health insurance, which was re-introduced on the failure of Medicare. Since the private health insurance users also pay the Medicare levy they get a small component of their private insurance claim from Medicare.
A principal insurance company in Australia is Blue Cross. Health insurance is a for profit operation.

Teaching hospitals are associated with Universities which are funded by student tuition fees and general tax revenue. Teaching hospitals are public hospitals and are funded by revenue from patients and money from state governments.

Australian health care facilities are run down from the government health years. Private investment in hospitals and clinics is slowly filling the gaps.

Health care for old people is a separate system funded from tax revenue and kicking in at about age 75 if I recall. Prescription drugs are handled by another program. A list of low cost generic type drugs is profived to a flat $30 fee. Drugs not on the list are sold at market prive.

The Medicare system was introduced around 1980 and had basically failed by 1990. Initially it was very popular because it seemed inexpensive and available to all. That only lasted until the existing hospitals and clinics, which had been of a high standard, were run down and worn out. Before long the fine health care system was a shanbles of unmaintained buildings, obsolete equipment and staff cuts.

Do NOT follow this pattern.

Overall Autralians are reasonably content with their system but very upset at the run down state of hospitals.

How are you defining "failed"?

You ought not speak of things you know little to nothing about.

Message to Aussies,

clirus is a known troll.

Don't feed clirus and don't respond to his mocking our country.

Let him pay (a lot) for his healthcare.

i would define the OP as failure, mostly failure to gather facts about the topic, she quotes another forum post!
is that really the best you can do clirus? c+p nonsense from another forum?
its like matt marriot all over again

__________________
We have seen thee, Queen of Cheese,
Lying quietly at your ease,
Gently fanned by evening breeze;
Thy fair form no flies dare seize.

All gaily dressed, soon you'll go
To the provincial show,
To be admired by many a beau
In the city of Toronto.
from "Ode on the Mammoth Cheese" by James McIntyre

But I like playing along with clirus every so often.

That's that Aussie Cheekiness Coming through!

I would affectionately use expletives to describe you, but this is an American Forum and our Aussie words are offensive here.

Bollocks!

I know it's only one area but I know that excess litigation has caused a lot of problems in australia. My father, a radiologist, used to locums (work a few weeks) for a friend over on the gold coast.
These days the fees you need to pay for litigation insurance, in case a patient sues you, is so great that it's no longe financially viable to work there. I've heard the same thing is happening in America, small town doctors unable to continue working because of the risk of frivilous law suits. Thankfully New Zealand is still resisting this direction.

Not that this has much to do with the OP but I thought it was of interest given the topic of healthcare in Australia.

__________________
From childhoods hour I have not been
as others were. I have not seen
as others saw. I could not bring
my passions from a common spring.
From the same source I have not taken
my sorrow. I could not awaken
my heart to joy at the same tone.
All I loved, I loved alone. Edgar Allen Poe

Tort Reform is essential to resolving the health care problem, yet Obama says there will be no Tort reform (most lawyers are democrats).

I stated my recommendation for Tort Reform in the thread "Hospital Health Care Plan".

Tort Reform

Law suits for damages shall require only proof that damages did occur. Payment of damages shall be as bills are accumulated. Care can be provided as an alternative to cash payments.

Law suits for punitive damages shall require proof of intent to harm and a conviction of at least one person who is responsible. Only individuals can be sued for punitive damages however everyone in the group can be sued if the damages occur due to group policy.

Clirus, you seemed to miss my rather fundamental question:

In what sense has the Australian health care system failed?