#Medicare growing at unsustainable rate, health minister warns
THE Opposition warns the government is on track to drive up healthcare costs and “dismantle” Medicare.
The caution comes after Health Minister Peter Dutton signalled Australians may have to pay more to see a doctor and get a blood test because Medicare is growing at an unsustainable rate.
“The introduction of a GP tax will reduce access to doctors for all Australians, putting additional pressure on public hospitals and in particular emergency departments,” Shadow Health Minister Catherine King said today.
“Mr Dutton is saying Australians should pay more because the Abbott Government won’t.”
And, Bill Shorten is pledging to fight any moves to “dismantle Medicare”.
“The Prime Minister promised before the election he wouldn’t introduce any new taxes, but now he is trying to sneak in a new GP tax that will hit families every time they visit the doctor,” the Opposition Leader claimed.
“I have a very clear message for Mr Abbott on behalf of doctors, health groups, families and pensioners: keep your hands off Medicare,” he said.
In a landmark speech, Mr Dutton says the cost of Medicare has risen by 124 per cent in the last decade and has “no prospect of meeting the needs of the health of our nation in the 21st century”.
Mr Dutton has also left open the option of charging a $6 fee for a GP visit claiming there must be a discussion about who pays for what in the health system.
The minister questioned whether people on good salaries should be able to see a doctor or get a blood test for free.
“I want to make sure that, for argument’s sake, we have a discussion about (people) on reasonable incomes whether we should expect to pay nothing when we go to see the doctor,” Mr Dutton told the ABC today.
“Should we expect to pay nothing as a co-contribution and other taxpayers to pick up that bill?”
He claimed many Australians already pay a co-contribution to buy medicines and private health insurance, but insisted the government didn’t want to “deter people from going to see a doctor”.
Those over 65 might not be immune, with the Minister arguing co-payments should be considered “regardless of people’s age”.
Tony Abbott has refused to go as far as Mr Dutton, but does admit the budget is under pressure.
“It’s very important that we do what we can to fix the budget as quickly as we can,” the Prime Minister told reporters in Sydney.
“But we’ve got to do it in ways which are consistent with our pre-election commitments,” he said, reaffirming his pledge to run a “no surprises” government.
Mr Abbott referred to his time as Health Minister, saying that “government was the best friend that Medicare had ever had”.
“This leopard doesn’t change his spots. I want this government to be likewise the best friend that Medicare has ever had,” he insisted.
The government’s Commission of Audit has been considering a proposal for a $6 GP fee to save $750 million over four years.
Delivering the first of what he says will be a series of headland speeches, Mr Dutton says doing nothing about the financial sustainability of the health system is “not an option”.
“One important job of the Abbott Government is to grow the opportunity for those Australians who can afford to do so to contribute to their own health costs,” he told the Committee for Economic Development of Australia (CEDA) in Brisbane.
Laying out a larger role for private health insurance in keeping people out of hospital, he said it made no sense for the government to pick up nearly 100 per cent of the cost when “the patient is prepared to contribute to their own costs”.
“Why shouldn’t we be open to greater involvement of the insurers who cover 11 million Australians to keep those people healthy and getting more access to primary care,” he said.
Health funds have begun trialling their involvement in primary health care even though health regulations forbid them covering the cost of a GP visit.
Medibank is delivering gap-free GP visits in some medical practices by covering administrative costs and Mr Dutton is watching with interest.
He said increasing the Medicare levy to cover future blowouts in health spending would be prohibitive. If the government were to increase the levy to cover the entire cost of the Commonwealth’s health budget, it would have to increase from 1.5 per cent to 9.5 per cent of taxable income or $7220 per year on an average salary.
“Either way, individuals end up paying for their health care — whether it is directly or indirectly through pay-as-you-go or through higher taxes otherwise,” he said.
Source:Herald Sun