While our health care services are not in terminal decline, they are suffering from some chronic illnesses. Yet successive governments have examined our health care policies and done little more than slap on some sticking-plaster and send the more demanding patients away with a jellybean.

The CPD’s work tackles the inefficiency, inequity and needless complexity of our health system. We provide a platform for experts, stakeholders and citizens to share information and develop ideas to resuscitate Australia’s ailing health policies.

Melissa Sweet | Federal govt urged to withdraw all support for private health insurance

In this article, Melissa Sweet promotes John Menadue and Ian McAuley’s discussion paper on private health insurance subsidies in Australia. With the government debating whether to introduce means testing on private health insurance, the new report urges the Government to withdraw all support for private health insurance, on equity and efficiency grounds. Given that the government has a stated policy of ‘social inclusion’, it seems strange that the well-off are able to opt out of sharing their … more

John Menadue and Ian McAuley | Govt proposals on private health insurance don’t go far enough

Writing in Crikey, CPD founder and board member John Menadue and CPD fellow Ian McAuley give their opinion on government proposals to apply a means test to private health insurance subsidies. Menadue and McAuley call for even more action than simply means testing, suggesting that a single national insurer would provide the most efficient and equitable means of sharing our health costs. “We are not advocating what some may call “socialised medicine”. Private hospitals serve an … more

John Menadue’s searing critique of rural health

CPD’s John Menadue was recently invited to speak at the 11th National Rural Health Conference, held in Perth in March 2011. One in three Australian live in rural and remote Australia but they are often overlooked by a public health sector that is geared towards servicing city dwellers and securing hospital resources. Critical areas such as rural health, Indigenous health and mental health are squeezed out of the equation. In his paper Beating the hospital obsession; the … more

 

John Menadue | Presentation at 11th National Rural Health Conference

CPD’s John Menadue was recently invited to speak at the 11th National Rural Health Conference, held in Perth in March 2011. Here is an edited version of John Menadue’s speaking notes: There are systemic problems in our health sector – a lack of guiding values and principles, governance confusion, exclusion of the community from health decisions, rapidly rising costs and the obsession with hospitals. We are bedevilled by powerful special interests. But what are the particular … more

John Menadue on re-distribution of doctors

How an auction might help fix medico maldistribution John Menadue, a key figure in establishing our system for universal health care, has had much to say about the direction of health policy in recent years. Now that health reform is back on the agenda, we’re pulling out some policy gems from the archive. In August 2008, John challenged the belief that we have a doctor shortage. He shares his ideas to address the problem of distribution … more

Australia is one step closer to an integrated health system | Jennifer Doggett

CPD health expert, Jennifer Doggett, takes a look at the introduction last week into Federal Parliament of legislation to establish the National Health and Hospitals Network (NHHN). It’s a step closer to an integrated health system, but she points out a number of challenges Gillard’s minority government will need to overcome if we are to realise a more efficient, responsive and consumer-focused health system. Australia is one step closer to an integrated health system, due … more

 

Means-testing just one way to roll back an inefficient health subsidy

Resident CPD health policy expert, Jennifer Doggett, takes a close look at what the government proposes to include in a bill to be introduced to parliament soon. While labor may now be calling for means testing the private health insurance rebate, Jennifer suggests there are better ways to allocate health funding that deliver health care to people when they need it most. Almost all health economists and policy experts agree that the private health insurance … more

Not so healthy proposals for Medicare & private insurance

Ian McAuley takes a look at the Government’s proposed bill to increase the Medicare Levy Surcharge and means test the private health insurance rebate. Ian considers what this means for funding our health system and making public and private hospitals work for us, as the patients who may need to use them. It has been reported that the Government will re-introduce to Parliament its bill to increase the Medicare Levy Surcharge and to abolish the … more

Shock Tactics

Are the ads made by John Singleton attacking the ALP’s health record telling the whole story? Jennifer Doggett tunes in Along with the ghosts of Labor leaders past, Julia Gillard now has to contend with ex-Labor supporter and adman John Singleton’s foray into the election campaign. Singleton’s agency Banjo has developed a series of advertisements attacking Labor’s health record on behalf of corporate medical outfit Primary Health Care. The ads feature a woman dying of … more