Media Releases

SUPPORT FOR PRIVATE HEALTH INSURANCE FINALLY CAPPED, BUT FOR THE WRONG REASONS

“It is welcome news for the majority of Australians that this government is finally capping the yearly increase in support for the minority of Australians who can afford private health insurance” said Dr Tracy Schrader, president, Doctors Reform Society

 “Every year since the PHI rebate was introduced the PHI industry has requested and been given an extra $200 million or so supposedly to keep up with inflation and keep premiums down. Every year premiums have risen. This has been a regular gift to the industry and the minority of Australians who can afford PHI. It has enabled them to queue jump the public hospital waiting lists and have their surgery almost immediately whilst their uninsured neighbours wait 1 or 2 years for the same life changing operations such as hip replacements.”

 “Finally the Federal Government has indicated that this yearly increase will be capped to inflation rather than increased at the request of the PHI industry,’ said Dr Schrader. “The disappointment is that this is only happening because of the Government obsession with a budget surplus which ignores the fact that we are one of the lowest taxed developed countries in the world.”

  “The money for a healthy health system is here in our rich country. Neither political party is interested.”

  

Dr Tracy Schrader    Dr Tim Woodruff  

President   Vice President      

Doctors Reform Society      Ph 0401042619

Ph 0408892610

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Friday 9^th September 2012

QUEENSLAND: THE UNHEALTHY STATE

 “The announcement today that 4200 people will be sacked from Queensland Health should send shock waves around Australia,” said Dr Peter Davoren, Queensland president, Doctors Reform Society.

“The Health Minister indicated that Queensland Health was told to find $326 million in savings, the equivalent of 4142 jobs,” said Dr Davoren. “What he may not have said is that the advice came from an audit committee headed by former Federal Treasury Peter Costello, and that the policy has the ringing endorsement of both Tony Abbott and Joe Hockey.”

 “If this is what Federal Liberals feel is great for Queensland, imagine what is secretly planned for the Federal funding of health if the Coalition wins next year,” said Dr Davoren.

 “The claim that such huge cuts will not impact on front line services and on the most needy and vulnerable in our community beggars belief and is pure political spin,” said Dr Davoren. Additionally however it will mean reduced public health services for everyone in Queensland as everyone needs public health services working in emergencies, and they can’t work without staff.

 “Queensland may well become the unhealthy state soon, but with the Federal Coalition so in tune with this slash and burn approach, it would appear that the health of nation is at serious risk. “

Dr Peter Davoren     Dr Tim Woodruff  

Queensland President                      National Vice President                               

Doctors Reform Society                     Ph 0401042619

Ph 0416187390

]]

29^th August 2012

REAL DENTAL REFORM PACKAGE WELCOME

 “The joint announcement today by Minister Plibersek and Green’s health spokesperson Di Natale of a new dental reform package is welcome and long overdue,” said Dr Tracy Schrader, president, Doctors Reform Society.

 “The package targets the most vulnerable 60% of children through a capped fee for service scheme run by the Federal Government and the most vulnerable 30% of adults through an expanded State public dental service.”

 “This is a better directed scheme than previously but it does not commit to any extra funding and nor is there any commitment to a progression towards a universal access scheme”, said Dr Schrader. “Thus, despite this being clearly better than the existing schemes, there will remain many people struggling to access dental services when needed.”

 “The lack of commitment to a future universal access scheme is puzzling for a party which introduced Medicare decades ago with such an aim in mind for medical services.”

 “The question must be asked: Does the current Labor Party believe in equity?”

Dr Tracy Schrader Dr Tim Woodruff

President Vice President  

Doctors Reform Society   Ph 0401042619

Ph 0408892610 

]]

“The Federal Government’s commitment to $500 million over 4 years for dental care is welcome but lacks any vision or strategy to achieve comprehensive universal access dental care for Australians,” said Dr Tracy Schrader, president, Doctors Reform Society.

“The plan appears to depend upon the capacity of State run public dental services to use the money despite workforce shortages,” said Dr Schrader. “Some patients will undoubtably benefit but if this is the plan for the next 4 years, many Australians will continue to be denied adequate dental care because it is too expensive.”

“Our public hospitals are struggling with huge waiting lists because there are no empty beds but dental problems are the second commonest cause of preventable admissions to public hospitals. Failure to spend adequately on dental spreads the problems across the system,” said Dr Schrader.

“Yet the Federal Government continues to fund the dental care of the many Australians who can afford dental cover through private health insurance whilst denying similar financial support to the majority who don’t have such cover.”

“A comprehensive accessible dental care system would seem to be as far away from most Australians as it was a decade ago”.

Dr Tracy Schrader
President
Doctors Reform Society
Ph 0401042619

Dr Tim Woodruff
Vice President
Doctors Reform Society
Ph 0408892610

]]

It is great to see the Federal Government forced into committing to improving dental care for the most needy whilst improving their budget position through the means testing of Private Health Insurance rebate, said Dr Tracy Schrader, President, Doctors Reform Society.

 It is however, disappointing to consider that patients waiting a year to get a hip or knee replacement  or a restoration of vision through a cataract operation, will be unaffected by the political games being played in Canberra.

 The introduction of the rebate in 1999 had hardly any effect on PHI. The carrot didn’t work. The Medicare Levy Surcharge introduced in 1997 to financially punish the rich who didn’t take PHI had no effect.  The stick didn’t work. An easing of the stick by increasing the threshold income for payment in 2009 did not lead to the sky falling in as predicted by the Coalition and the industry. In fact there was an increase in PHI coverage. The stick was a dismal failure.

 So the new changes will have minimal effect on PHI coverage. But they will increase revenue for the cash strapped government and, because of the Greens intervention they will lead to some money being dedicated to dental care despite the resistance of the Government.

 But the biggest threat to HI and the private hospital industry is a well resourced public system in which the population has confidence. Sadly, the Labor Party, which introduced Medicare nearly 3 decades ago, appears to be quite uninterested in making the public hospital system an attractive choice for Australians. Instead it is more than happy to celebrate an increase in PHI uptake even though the main reason people are moving to private is their fear that the public system is not up to scratch.

It would appear we now have bipartisan support for a two tiered health system.

Dr Tracy Schrader    Dr Tim Woodruff  

President   Vice President      

Doctors Reform Society                 

]]

The increasing and almost unregulated growth of corporate medicine in Australia documented in the Australian and the Medical Journal of Australia should be a wake up call to the Federal Government, said Dr Tracy Schrader, President, Doctors Reform Society.

Listed corporations exist to maximise profits, said Dr Schrader. If they can do that by providing first class medical care, they will. If some minor rorting or overservicing increases their profits with no obvious negative impacts on patients, they will be tempted to do just that, especially in an environment where regulation is so lax.

In this poorly regulated environment major rorting and overservicing is bound to occur. The unnecessary knee arthroscopy or coronary angiogram will find its place because doctors are human and range in personalities from generous saints to greedy psychopaths. Most of us are in between.

The Australian Medical Association believes that the amount of money Medicare pays doctors is grossly inadequate and continually recommends huge gaps or copayments to make up the income When the Government then sets up systems which rely almost entirely on the honesty of doctors to determine how much money is paid to doctors, we should not be surprised at the results.

Who pays the price for the Government closing its eyes to the problem? Patients and taxpayers.

It’s time the Government looked a lot harder at Medicare.

Dr Tracy Schrader    Dr Tim Woodruff  

President   Vice President      

Doctors Reform Society          

]]

“Patients will continue to pay up to four times more than in other countries for many life saving drugs despite the Federal Government’s new arrangement to reduce drug costs,” said Dr Tracy Schrader, President, Doctors Reform Society.

“In addition this new arrangement will do almost nothing to address the fact that almost 1 million Australians delayed or did not get the drugs they were prescribed because of the cost (according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics patient experience survey).”

“Whilst it is great that the price of some commonly used drugs will fall substantially, many will remain too expensive and puts a strain even on working Australians let alone the most needy in our community. Why does Government approve life saving drugs and then put a price on them which stops the sickest and poorest people from getting them?,” asked Dr Schrader.

Dr Tracy Schrader
President
Doctors Reform Society
Ph 0401042619

Dr Tim Woodruff
Vice President
Doctors Reform Society
Ph 0408892610

]]

 “Figures about publicly funded private health insurance (PHI) released today show that 45% of Australians don’t trust governments to deliver timely access to high quality hospital care in public hospitals,” said Dr Tracy Schrader, President, Doctors Reform Society.

 “Rich patients take out PHI because they can. Middle income earners and some people on lower incomes who are very concerned about their health take out expensive PHI because they are afraid not to,” said Dr Schrader. “Those who can’t afford PHI just have to live or die with their fear and their pain waiting to get into a hospital bed, even though once they get in it is high quality care, even better than in private hospitals.”

 “These figures are a sad indictment of a Labor Party which has moved so far from the party that introduced public hospital access for all nearly 30 years ago,” lamented Dr Schrader. “Despite their talk of so called reform, they have no plan to build the public hospital system back to one which could stop fear and distrust of the public hospital system forcing people to take out PHI.”

 “Instead the Health Minister Nicola Roxon is pleased that more people are so worried that they are paying thousands a year for PHI so that they can bypass the under-resourced public system.”

 “Whilst means testing the PHI rebate is half a good idea, the other half would be to commit to building the public system back to a position such that fear and distrust is not a reason to take out PHI.”

 Dr Tracy Schrader    Dr Tim Woodruff                              

President   Vice President      

Doctors Reform Society             

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