Australian government urged on public hospital plan

Sydney Morning Herald, June 9, 2009

The Australian Medical Association has called on the federal government to develop a contingency plan for public hospitals in case a large number of people drop their private health coverage. The Australian government recently announced changes to private health insurance rebates, and estimated around 25,000 people will drop their coverage as a result. The AMA is encouraging the government to put in place a plan to increase funding to public hospitals so they could cope with the potential extra demand.