DOCTORS REFORM SOCIETY
11 December 2009
TAXPAYERS SLUGGED AGAIN FOR PRIVATE INSURANCE
“Despite long
term federal Government underfunding of public hospitals, the Private Health
Insurance industry is asking for another huge taxpayer subsidy when it asks for a $200 per year
increase in premiums,” said Dr Tim Woodruff, President, Doctors Reform Society.
“Almost one third of the $200, or around $60 is funded by the taxpayer”, said Dr Woodruff. “Also
twenty four dollars will go into administration costs to support the grossly inefficient industry, and
the rest is available to subsidise those Australians who are lucky enough to be able to afford
private health insurance -
mainly the middle class
and the wealthy...
The 56% of Australians
who can’t afford private insurance will stay wholly dependent on an underfunded and struggling
public hospital system -
which the incoming federal Government
claimed it was going to fix -
while all Australians
will remain almost wholly dependant on the struggling public system for
serious illness and non elective surgery type care.”
“The Productivity Commission has concluded it can’t come to a conclusion on whether private or
public hospitals are better because the Government has not forced hospitals to collect and
release the data needed but the evidence from North America is that private for profit hospitals
have higher death rates than public hospitals.”
“So in Australia we have a Federal Government using taxes to fund richer Australians to queue
jump the public hospital waiting lists and enter private hospitals which may be more dangerous
than the public ones they’ve avoided.”
“It’s time the Government was honest with the Australian people,” said Dr Woodruff. “It should
immediately begin the gradual removal of the dangerous, inefficient and inequitable taxpayer
support for the private health insurance industry. Its time to stop the PHI rebate charade and
get back to putting our taxes into our hospitals and health care -
not into the pockets of private
business and individuals."
Dr Tim Woodruff Dr Con Costa
President Vice President
Doctors Reform Society Ph 0418400309
Ph 0401042619
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