For one, I'd like to know who the "many, many commentators" are? Blind Freddie would be able to tell you that there's something not quite right about the current health system and the funding model it uses. The different tiers of government certainly don't help, along with the associated buck passing that pollies like to engage in.
One phrase/term that I recall hearing time and time again amongst all the rhetoric is "the ageing population" and the associated doomsday scenarios that come hand in hand with that topic. I've never been completely convinced that it is as serious as pollies would have us believe. I recently read an article from The Medical Journal of Australia entitled, "Ageing and health care costs in Australia: a case of policy-based evidence?" by Michael Coory (2004). Here's the abstract (you can read the entire article by following the link above):
- There have been dire predictions that population ageing will result in skyrocketing health costs. However, numerous studies have shown that the effect of population ageing on health expenditure is likely to be small and manageable.
- Pessimism about population ageing is popular in policy debates because it fits with ideological positions that favour growth in the private sector and seek to contain health expenditure in the public sector. It might also distract attention from the need to evaluate the appropriateness and effectiveness of current patterns of care.
- Pessimistic scenarios have stifled debate and limited the number of policy options considered. Policy making in Australia would be improved if we took a more realistic view of the effect of population ageing on health expenditure.
