445 research outputs found

    Tackling out-of-pocket health care costs: a discussion paper

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    Growing out-of-pocket health care costs are creating barriers to essential care for many Australians and arguably leading to increased hospital costs. Over time they will undermine the universality of Medicare and widen health disparities in our community. Despite this, the Abbott Government is intent on increasing Australians\u27 individual health care costs, claiming variously that the health care budget is unsustainable, price signals are needed to reduce GP visits, budget deficits must be addressed and increased funding is needed for medical research. Regardless of the validity of the Government\u27s claims, it is clear that we need to improve the way in which we manage out-of-pocket costs within our health care system. The current financing mechansims and safety-net arrangements are inadequate to ensure that growing numbers of Australians with long-term medical conditions can manage their health care costs and afford the services they need. Given the compexity of Australia\u27s health care system, with funding and service delivery responsibilities split between different levels of government and the public and private sectors, this is a wicked problem to solve. There is no silver bullet and effective solutions are unlikely to be found through simple \u27add-ons\u27 to the currentfunding system. Effective solutions are likely to be multi-faceted and will require a potent mix of evidence, ideology, consultation and leadership to be successful. To kick-start the necesary analyses, debates and policy formulations, we have developed a discussion paper on out-of-pocket costs, focusing on Medicare-funded services. The paper sets out the parameters of the problem and canvasses some promising areas where solutions may be found. Our purpose is not to dictate future policy directions but to present the current evidence and to galvanise thought, expertise and engagement to address this issue of faireness and equity

    ANALYSIS OF THE 2010-2011 HEALTH AND AGEING BUDGET

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    The 2010-11 Budget and the raft of health care reform announcements that preceded it will supply the platform on which the Rudd Government will run in the forthcoming election. It deserves scrutiny to determine if it delivers on previous election commitments and to assess how well it reflects the recommendations provided by the National Health and Hospitals Reform Commission, the National Preventative Health Task Force, the National Primary Health Care Strategy External Reference Group, the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) Health and Ageing Working Group, the Maternity Services Review, and reviews of rural health and MBS items

    BUDGET 2007-08 Mid Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook

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    The purpose of the MYEFO report is to provide updated information to allow the assessment of the Government's fiscal performance against the fiscal strategy set out in the current Budget Papers (ie Budget Paper No. 1)

    ANALYSIS OF THE HEALTH PROVISIONS IN THE 2012-13 MID-YEAR ECONOMIC AND FISCAL OUTLOOK (MYEFO)

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    This paper looks at the health provisions in the 2012-13 Mid Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook 2012 13 (MYEFO). It is done in the light of current and past strategies, policies, programs and funding and is supported by data drawn from government documents, Senate Estimates, Medicare Australia, reports and published papers. The opinions expressed are those of the author who takes full responsibility for them and for any inadvertent errors

    CLOSING THE GAP ON INDIGENOUS DISADVANTAGE: An analysis of provisions in the 2013-14 Budget and implementation of the Indigenous Chronic Disease Package

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    This paper presents the author’s analysis of the Indigenous provisions in the Australian Government’s 2013-14 Budget in the context of current and past strategies, policies, programs and funding support. It also looks at the implementation and impact of the Commonwealth’s Indigenous Chronic Disease Package. This work has been done using only materials and data that are publicly available. The opinions expressed are solely those of the author who takes responsibility for them and for any inadvertent errors. This work does not represent the official views of the Menzies Centre for Health Policy, the Australian Primary Health Care Research Institute (APHCRI) or the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing which funds APHCRI

    AN UPDATE ON MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES

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    AN UPDATE ON MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES INCLUDING AN ANALYSIS OF 2009-2010 MENTAL HEALTH BUDGETS FROM THE COMMONWEALTH AND STATE AND TERRITORY GOVERNMENT

    SCORECARD ON GOVERNMENT HEALTH COMMITMENTS

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    Scorecard on Government Health Commitments 200

    BUDGET 2008-09 Mid Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook

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    The Charter of Budget Honesty Act 1998 requires the Treasurer to publicly release and table a Mid-year Economic and Fiscal Outlook (MYEFO) report by the end of January in each year, or within 6 months after the last budget, whichever is later. Typically, MYEFO is released in November each year. This year it was released on November 6

    IMPACT OF THE 2014-15 FEDERAL BUDGET ON INDIGENOUS PROGRAMS AND SERVICES

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    This analysis looks at the Indigenous provisions in the 2014-15 federal Budget. This is done in the light of current and past strategies, policies, programs and funding, and is supported, where this is possible, by data and information drawn from government agencies, reports and published papers. Similar analyses from previous budgets are available on the University of Sydney e-scholarship website. The opinions expressed are solely those of the author who takes responsibility for them and for any inadvertent errors. This work does not represent the official views of the Menzies Centre for Health Policy

    MENTAL HEALTH AND RELATED PROVISIONS IN THE 2014-15 FEDERAL BUDGET

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    This paper presents the author’s analysis of the mental health and related provisions in the Australian Government’s 2014‐15 Budget in the context of current and past strategies, policies, programs and funding support. This work has been done using only materials and data that are publicly available. Similar analyses from previous budgets are available on the University of Sydney e‐scholarship website.1 The opinions expressed are solely those of the author who takes responsibility for them and for any inadvertent errors. This work does not represent the official views of the Menzies Centre for Health Policy
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