Australia: $7 GP co-payment scrapped. - Polidicks

[QUOTE]The Federal Government is abandoning a centrepiece of its May budget, the $7 GP co-payment. It is one of several measures swept up in what Prime Minister Tony Abbott is calling "a barnacle-clearing" exercise to remove policies slowing the Government's momentum through its second year in office. Sources have told ABC that the Coalition was "willing to go back to the drawing board". The Government had not introduced legislation to enact the co-payment in the Lower House as it did not have sufficient support to pass the Senate. Source: [url]http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-11-26/gp-copayment-back-to-drawing-board/5918890[/url][/QUOTE] For those who want to know what this was, [URL="http://www.humanservices.gov.au/corporate/publications-and-resources/budget/1415/measures/health-matters-and-health-professionals/34-90188"]read here[/URL].

$7 was never going to save your budget, Tony.

There wasn't a very big outrage about it from the population, but I think if it did go through there would have been a bit more voice from the people.

[QUOTE=lilgrill;46577860]There wasn't a very big outrage about it from the population, but I think if it did go through there would have been a bit more voice from the people.[/QUOTE] What? There was a huge backlash. The $7 co-payment was the most controversial thing about the budget. As far as I can tell only the fuel tax indexation and university fee deregulation came close in terms of anger produced. So yeah fuck the Abbott government.

Thank Fucking God. It was a really really terrible idea.

oh thats good

Ahah. And this is where policy backflips are openly welcomed. At least they realized it was a bad idea.

[QUOTE=lilgrill;46577860]There wasn't a very big outrage about it from the population, but I think if it did go through there would have been a bit more voice from the people.[/QUOTE] You kidding lol this and uni fee deregulation were the most hotly contested things about the entire budget

I have a $25 copay with my insurance here in the states.

[QUOTE=bord2tears;46582372]I have a $25 copay with my insurance here in the states.[/QUOTE] yeah but its widely known that US health insurance is really quite bad

[QUOTE=killerteacup;46583442]yeah but its widely known that US health insurance is really quite bad[/QUOTE] Insurance may be bad (I got a $10 copay), but the healthcare I'm quite happy with.

[QUOTE=Code3Response;46583533]Insurance may be bad (I got a $10 copay), but the healthcare I'm quite happy with.[/QUOTE] You shouldn't be. We spend 17 percent of our national GDP vs Australia's 9 percent. In return we get nothing. NOTHING. Australia's health care system ranks 4th on this list in terms of health care outcomes. We rank 11th. Behind EVERYONE. [url]http://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/fund-reports/2014/jun/mirror-mirror[/url] There is nothing good about American health care at all.

I'd kill for a $7 co-pay if it would fund a public prescription drug and dental plan

Thank god, something good has finally happened.

[QUOTE=GunFox;46583560]You shouldn't be. We spend 17 percent of our national GDP vs Australia's 9 percent. In return we get nothing. NOTHING. Australia's health care system ranks 4th on this list in terms of health care outcomes. We rank 11th. Behind EVERYONE. [url]http://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/fund-reports/2014/jun/mirror-mirror[/url] There is nothing good about American health care at all.[/QUOTE] I find this stat loaded only because of the sheer amount of hospitals in the United States. Cedar-Sinai will not compare to the Joplin Community Hospital. You have literally hundreds of practices in the south that are simply poor but internally funded. E: This post is not suggesting US Healthcare overall is [I]good[/I], just that it requires a little more objective thinking.

[QUOTE=Zambies!;46583836]I find this stat loaded only because of the sheer amount of hospitals in the United States. Cedar-Sinai will not compare to the Joplin Community Hospital. You have literally hundreds of practices in the south that are simply poor but internally funded. E: This post is not suggesting US Healthcare overall is [I]good[/I], just that it requires a little more objective thinking.[/QUOTE] That may hold up if we didn't rank flat last in a ridiculous number of categories compared to countries spending half as much of their GDP with nationalized healthcare. The statistic isn't loaded and it isn't misleading.

[QUOTE=lilgrill;46577860]There wasn't a very big outrage about it from the population, but I think if it did go through there would have been a bit more voice from the people.[/QUOTE] There was, because this heaps on more expenses for the taxpayer. Not to forget that it targeted the LNP's voter powerbase as well (aka families, the elderly, conservatives)