adelcrow wrote on Feb 15
th, 2012 at 9:30am:
We can thank Howard for getting a generation of Aussies and his favoured private businesses addicted to welfare
The Howard/Abbott health setup is an absolute disgrace, and its a disgrace that labor have left it in this state for so long.
It is a system where everyone gets screwed except doctors, and health fund managers.
It screws the very people its supposed to help.
Its screws both rich and poor people. It screws the tax payer, playing $X billion to prop up private companies (health funds), and it screws the rich who have private health cover, but are again forced to pay outrageous gaps.
Its like getting charged twice. And who gets that money, well the good old doctors who have a choice of getting $100/hour in public, or charging $600/hour for private (hence gap, as even the funds wont pay that). Doctors have become snake oil salesman. The first question they ask you is "do you have health insurance". What they are really asking is, "can I charge this sucker $600 instead of $100 and hope that his complicated health insurance policy hides its true cost (the gap) form him, until he's well gone ?"
Scam. Just like any tax payer funding of private industry. Should never be done.