Partial funding of Medicare medical benefits expenditure is from a levy on taxable income. The balance of funding for Medicare medical benefits is from consolidated revenue. The Medicare Levy was originally set at 1 per cent of taxable income when first introduced in ; however it has gradually increased since then.
It is currently set at 1. The Medicare levy only funds a portion of total Commonwealth expenditure on health. The Medicare Levy Surcharge is an additional 1 per cent surcharge of taxable income imposed on high-income earners who are eligible for Medicare but who do not have an appropriate level of hospital insurance with a registered health fund. The Medicare Levy Surcharge is in addition to the normal 1.
More information on the surcharge is available by clicking on the link above. Medicare is a very popular government program and public support has been high. In April just after its introduction, 52 per cent of respondents to an opinion poll commissioned by the Health Insurance Commission HIC were in favour of Medicare, and this had risen to 85 per cent in , according to a Background Paper prepared by the Parliamentary Library. In , the HIC processed Bulk billing occurs when the medical practitioner bills Medicare directly, accepting the Medicare rebate as full payment for the service this is sometimes also referred to as direct billing.
Under these arrangements no additional charges relating to the service can be made, consequently there is no out of pocket cost to the patient. Quarterly Medicare Statistics released by the Department of Health and Ageing provide details of current and past levels of bulk billing including by electorate , number of Medicare services accessed, average patient contributions and other relevant data.
The latest statistics are available online. A useful introductory table is the Analysis of Major Aggregates by Broad Type of Service which includes summary data on number of services, benefits paid, patient contributions and bulk billing levels. Table A7 shows the percentage of all services bulk billed, while Table C3 shows bulk billing rates for unreferred GP attendances. Levels of bulk billing for unreferred GP attendances have been declining in recent years after reaching a high of By the December quarter bulk billing for unreferred GP attendances had declined to Bulk billing rates by Federal electorate are now released as part of the Medicare Statistics year end figures only.
Table E1 shows the percentage of non-referred GP attendances by Federal electorate. The most recent data year ending December shows the electorate of Indi has the lowest level of bulk billing For an exploration of the reasons for the decline in bulk billing, see the Department of the Parliamentary Library's Current Issues Brief Decline in Bulk Billing: Explanations and Implications , also available as an audio brief by Amanda Elliot.
Proposals for changes to Medicare were announced by the Coalition during the election campaign. Details are available in this election policy statement. These changes will require amendments to the Health Insurance Act and related legislation.
For copyright reasons some linked items are only available to Members of Parliament. Australian Parliament House is currently closed to the public. What is Medicare Medicare is the Commonwealth funded health insurance scheme that provides free or subsidised health care services to the Australian population.
History Medibank is Introduced Following mounting dissatisfaction with the existing voluntary health insurance scheme, major changes to Australia's health care system were introduced by the newly elected Whitlam Labor Government. Financing and Cost The original legislation proposed financing the program through a taxpayer levy of 1. Changes Under the Fraser Government The Medibank program had only a few months of operation before the dismissal of the Whitlam Government on 11 November , and the subsequent election of the Liberal-National Coalition under Fraser in December Medicare from Onwards The major changes introduced by the Fraser Government were largely rejected by the Hawke Labor Government, which returned to the original Medibank model.
When the government tried to narrow the gap between fees and refunds by increasing subsidies to insurers, doctors simply raised their fees again. It was a remarkably equitable approach to health insurance. Medibank put Australia far ahead of countries like the United States that still rely on private insurance that is overwhelmingly linked to an ongoing employment contract.
Along with guaranteeing free treatment in public hospitals, Medibank set a standard rate for general practitioner visits while still allowing doctors to run private practices. Alternately, if doctors wanted to charge more than the scheduled fee, their patients had the option of paying the full fee upfront and claiming reimbursement to the value of the scheduled fee. While not a fully public health system, Medibank was still a historic step forward.
Whitlam did not give the health minister Doug Everingham responsibility for Medibank. Instead, he gave it to Bill Hayden, the social security minister.
When it came to health, however, he opted to meet the Liberals on their own terrain, accepting the insurance model of health care provision and introducing Medibank to make it more equitable.
Immediately, Fraser moved to water down Medibank, initially by making it easy for people to opt out and purchase private health insurance instead.
This effectively abolished the guarantee of universal health insurance coverage. In July , Australian unions called a national strike that saw up to two million workers walk off the job in defense of Medibank. However, it was in line with an emerging trend toward politically oriented industrial action. Railway and maritime unions blockaded uranium shipments in support of the antinuclear movement. The hour Medibank general strike shut down public transport, closed schools and most industrial enterprises, and grounded aviation.
Even pubs shut their doors. The ACTU did not organize union-sanctioned rallies or marches to back the rank-and-file driven hour shutdown. Prime Minister Robert Hawke, 5 March 1. With this historic initiative, all Australians now have a new, simpler and fairer health insurance system.
Over the 20th century, Australian health and welfare improved greatly. These include:. This moment, suggested by Denise Moore, extends the story of health and social welfare into the later part of the 20th century. Universal healthcare is relatively new in Australia. Healthcare in the 19th century was very much a private affair. The quality of healthcare depended on many factors, including: where you lived, what kind of background and education you had, and your level of income.
Doctors were not necessarily the highly trained and regulated professionals that we think of now; that too is a 20th century innovation. Hospitals were generally places of last resort. Just who should bear responsibility for healthcare was a heated debate throughout the 20th century. Politically, people form their views on this issue depending on their beliefs about the role of government.
Some people believe that government should have as minimal a role as possible, and that individual rights and freedoms are paramount. Yes No. Your age Please enter your age. Partner's age Please enter your partner's age. Income type. Single income Family income. Annual income. To find out more about how your information is managed at Medibank please read our Privacy policy First name Please enter your name. Phone number Phone number should begin with a '0'.
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