Howard's hypocrisy on managing Health
by defendmedicare.info
Friday September 10, 2004 at 12:53 AM
In the last week we were furnished with Labor's policy on Medicare and health. A further $1.8billion Medicare package announced by John Howard, and the Democrats called for major health reform. Howard's package was largely seen as a pay rise for doctors contributing little to stabilising or encoraging bulk billing or improved GP service in stark contrast to the ALP package. The Age Editorial attacked the Government for its record on Medicare and Health. Howard's financial management of Health was questioned and his hypocrisy in increasing the rebate was highlighted. Health Minister Abbott has been relegated to playing the part of a Prime Ministerial puppet.
Health policies released
This week Latham announced Medicare policy for the ALP (ABC 6/9/04) which included:
- lifting the Medicare rebate for bulk bill consultations to 100 per cent immediately.
- incentive payments of up to $22,500 for bulk billing doctors who reach certain targets, depending on their location around the country.
- $128 million commitment to Medicare teams and after hours services
- take the pressure off our public hospitals and make more of their resources available for the more acute and specialised care that they're designed to provide.
Hours later John Howard announced a $1.8billion further Medicare package (ABC 6/9/04) which increases the rebate for all GP services from 85 per cent to 100 per cent of the scheduled fee. Shadow Treasurer, Simon Crean, used the Governments own statements on spending to accuse the Govt's Medicare plan of being a rates risk (SMH 7/9/04). Howard supports need for high specialist fees (SMH 8/9/04).
The Democrats seek health system shakeup and major Health reform (SMH 8/9/04).
Reaction to Policy Statements
Doctors divided over best prognosis (Courier Mail 7/9/04) and the Government's package is assessed with GPs the winners, not patients: experts (The Age 7/9/04).
The AMA denies doctor fee rise (Australian 8/9/04). Latest Medicare policies discussed (ABC 6/9/04) by AMA National President Bill Glasson and Nicola Ballenden from the Australian Consumers Association. The consumers point of view is further elaborated on by Nicola Ballendan in If only it were so easy for those who pay (SMH 9/9/04):
The Government is throwing around vast wads of taxpayers' cash to rapturous applause from the Australian Medical Association - the doctors' union - which is unsurprising, given the no-strings attached pay rise they are getting out of it. Consumers, however, should not confuse the Government's actions with responsible financial management of the health system.
The Age Editorial attacks Government record on Medicare and Health
The Age provides a lucid editorial on the Government in Haphazard treatment poses big health risks (Age 8/9/04), including making the following points on the Governments track record:
- "The Howard Government may have spent more than $20 million on advertising its claims to have "fixed" the system, but this week's developments suggest not even the Government believes its own propaganda."
- "Bulk-billing rates fell continuously from more than 80 per cent in 1996 to 66.5 per cent late last year before Government incentives produced a slight recovery to 70.7 per cent in the June quarter."
- "the average fee has risen by 80 per cent since 1996 and by 16 per cent in the past year."
- "hospital emergency departments are clogged with patients who should be seeing a GP but are unable to gain prompt access or afford an upfront payment."
- On the private health insurance rebate: "The cost will pass $3 billion with the Coalition's proposed increase for the over-65s. Despite this massive subsidy from the public purse to private-sector medicine, the goal of easing the burden on public hospitals has not been achieved."
- On the Safety Net package: "the $440 million budget for the Government's Medicare "safety net" provisions has blown out badly."
- "So, after eight years in office, what did the Government do to "save Medicare" this week? It simply threw more money at the problem, a practice Prime Minister John Howard has long said he deplores. Total Coalition promises on Medicare now exceed $5 billion over the next four years. Mr Howard's claim that the Coalition's $1.8 billion Medicare package "trumps" Labor's policy released on the same day was widely reported as fact. This simplistic verdict rests largely on the amount of spending, rather than the likely policy outcomes of such spending."
- "the failure of governments to ensure enough doctors are trained and retained has contributed to a shortage of GPs."
- In the past six months, the average upfront charge for a standard consultation has risen 10 per cent to $40, an increase that is not far short of the extra rebate."
The editorial was also critical of Labor policy as well:
- "Both parties are guilty of small-picture politics that panders to voters' immediate concerns, while ignoring the big issues of service delivery, cost-efficiency and sustainability."
- "Labor has promised a 12-month health reform commission, but it has already pre-empted that process by promising, for instance, to retain the private health rebate in full. Neither party has offered evidence it is capable of the bold and broad reforms that are urgently needed to restore Medicare as a universally accessible and economically sustainable system."
Howard's recent hypocrisy on managing Health
Over the life of the Howard Government Doctor cost surges 72pc (Herald Sun 6/9/04). Bills keep bulking up with another Medicare bandaid job (Australian 7/9/04) which highlights Howard's recent hypocrisy on Medicare. On November 18, 2003, Howard told Alan Jones on radio:
"There is a lot of evidence – and even the Labor-dominated Senate committee a few weeks ago acknowledged this – that at least the equal driver of the level of bulk-billing is the availability of doctors. And in fact, that committee cast real doubt on whether a significant across-the-board increase in the Medicare rebate would produce a significant alteration in the level of bulk-billing."
The latest pronouncement by Howard, which increases the Medicare rebate for all GP services from 85 per cent to 100 per cent of the scheduled fee, is likely to be pocketed by doctors as an income rise and is not likely to resolve the health crisis in bulk billing or level of GP service. It is exactly what Howard dismissed as recently as last November in the 'Medicare Plus' package. It reinforces statements by Latham that Howard is not a Medicare believer (SMH 6/9/04).
Howard's financial management of Health questioned
Kenneth Davidson highlights that PM's claim to fiscal rectitude a bit rich (Age 9/9/04)
Why subsidise private health insurance further when the money could be used to reduce elective surgery waiting lists in public hospitals, which would remove one of the major impediments to consumers dropping costly private insurance in the first place?
MedicarePlus is already being seen as a public finance scandal from the latest report of Four Corners, which showed that the scheme is an uncapped licence to print money for specialists.
According to The Australian Financial Review, the Coalition has put forward a $5.1 billion heath package compared with a much more modest $3.5 billion package from the ALP. The Coalition package will largely benefit the health insurance funds and supplement doctor incomes. The ALP package is directed at increasing bulkbilling rates and boosting the number of doctors and nurses, so it is politically more effective because the spending flows through to patients rather than health providers.
Health Minister just a Prime Ministerial puppet
Health Minister, Tony Abbott, has played second fiddle to John Howard's pronouncements on Medicare making him seem like a Prime Ministerial puppet. In comparison Shadow Health Minister Julia Gillard defends ALP bulk-billing plan(ABC 6/9/04) and Gillard promises Medicare probe (News.com 6/9/04) on Fee-shifting (Age 24/7/04) and Doctors accused of double dipping (Advertiser 6/8/04).
Out in the electorates medicare, bulk billing and health issues continue to be prominent as local issues with one Labor candidate saying Families can't afford to get sick (Murray Valley Standard 3/9/04).
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