THE government’s back flip on the Medicare co-payment is the right decision – but has come far too late.
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The various forms of policy which the Abbott government has put forward to rein in the ballooning health budget have all been ill advised and poorly argued.
The decision to move on from the proposal is a smart one politically, but there is one solution that is more palatable and much more effective – simply raise the Medicare levy.
The levy is the most equitable and efficient way of raising tax dollars specifically for health.
People who earn more pay more, and the vulnerable in our community are protected.
In the past 10 years the cost of healthcare in our nation has blown out from around $8 billion a year to $20 billion.
There's no need for complicated policy in this area – an easy solution already exists and it isn’t likely to cause any of the political pain felt since the co-payment was first mooted last year.