"Medicare and Public Hospitals are being starved of money while the Federal Government wastes $200 million dollars trying to prop up the inefficient Private Health Funds" said Dr Con Costa, President of the Doctors Reform Society.

" The latest proposal to waste another $200 million trying to "buy off" those surgeons who overcharge patients is an outrageous waste of money that would be better going into Public Hospitals than wealthy surgeons pockets" said Dr Costa.

"The Federal Government cries poor with the States, refusing to put sufficient money into Public Hospitals but it can find an extra $200 million to waste on Private Health Insurance" said Dr Costa.

"This Federal Government is not listening to the people who have voted with their feet by leaving the Private Health Funds and choosing to rely on Medicare" said Dr Costa.

"The Premier of Victoria Jeff Kennett has stated that the Federal Government’s previous $450 million attempt to prop up the Private Health Industry was ‘money down the drain’. It is now time for the Federal Government to put the people’s money where they want it to go, into Medicare and our Public Hospitals" said Dr Costa.

written and seconded by Robert Marr and Con Costa
21 July 1998