Almost half of Australians are putting off needed treatment because of cost, an exclusive ABC Q+A survey has found.
A national poll by YouGov found that despite billions of dollars in incentives for GPs from the Commonwealth, three-quarters of Australians struggle to find a bulk-billing doctor. It became clear.
The findings expose the inequities of the country’s patchwork public health system and reflect recent warnings from health and social care organizations that sick Australians are not getting the help they need. .
And they suggest Australians support a significant expansion of subsidized care, with overwhelming support for dental insurance, which has long been seen as the biggest hole in the Medicare network.
Federal Health Secretary Mark Butler was shown the new poll results ahead of tonight’s Q+A appearance and admitted: “We know there’s more work to do.”
46% of the 1,514 respondents to the weighted survey answered, “Have I ever postponed medical or dental treatment for myself or a family member due to concerns about the cost of living?” .
This figure was highest among Australians aged 25 to 34 (54%). Six out of 10 people who lived in rental housing said they had put off seeking medical care.
Both Australian Bureau of Statistics The Royal Australian College of GPs (RACGP) also reports that the number of people delaying or refraining from seeing a doctor has doubled in 12 months. Data from the NSW Council of Social Services (NCOSS) According to statistics released last week, the rate of increase is nearly 2.5 times.
“Financial pressures are leaving too many people without access to health care,” said Carla Varian, chief executive of NCOSS.
Consolidated billing becomes difficult to access
Mr Butler said the government’s $3.5 billion investment in bulk billing (three times the doctor incentive) had delivered an additional five million free GP visits since November last year.
But 76% of those surveyed last week said bulk-billed health care services have become harder to find in recent years. Only 6% think it has gotten easier.
The numbers were similar across all demographic and political affiliation groups.
RACGP pointed out that the government was only encouraging children, pensioners and discount card holders to book, which was why many Australians were not enjoying the benefit.
“When we came into office, bulk billing was in the worst shape in Medicare’s 40-year history,” Butler said in a Q+A, adding that the previous administration’s “six-year decline in bulk billing” “Freezing”.
“I’ve tried to be honest with Australians.”
A recent RACGP survey found that eight in 10 practice owners are concerned about their financial viability because Medicare rebates have not kept pace with inflation. Three in 10 said they wanted to quit practicing within the next five years.
But there was little sympathy from patients surveyed by YouGov, with 84% strongly favoring prohibiting providers from charging more than their scheduled fees for Medicare-covered services. answered.
Opposition parties say a workforce strategy is needed and have pledged to spend $400 million to encourage junior doctors to join general practice if they win power.
Shadow Health Secretary Anne Ruston said: “We understand that reforms are not worth the paper they are written on if we don’t have the workforce to deliver them.”
8 out of 10 people want Medicare dental care
A Q+A/YouGov poll found that eight in 10 Australians would rather have free and equal access to healthcare than the ability to choose between public and commercial healthcare (17%). answered that this is an important value.
And just as many (82%) said they supported raising Medicare levies to expand coverage for dental care.
The latest 2022-2023 data from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare shows 30% of Australians have delayed or avoided necessary dental treatment in the past 12 months, while 87,000 hospital admissions for dental conditions have occurred. It was shown that this could have been avoided with early treatment.
Several members of the Government backbench have publicly raised the need for dental insurance, which is part of the Green Party’s policy platform. But the Health Minister has so far denied that.
“We know that in the medium to long term we have ambitions to include dentistry in Medicare, but for now we are focused on strengthening Medicare and general practice,” Mr Butler said.
The value of insurance is questioned
The number of Australians with some form of health insurance has increased to around 55% of the population, but industry estimates that cost of living pressures are causing the number of people with the highest level of insurance to decline. I admit it.
A Q+A/YouGov poll found that more than six in 10 respondents think health insurance is too expensive and not worth the money.
While patient out-of-pocket costs for each treatment are increasing, insurance groups say They are facing an “existence crisis” due to rising costs due to inflation.
The majority of Australians (63%) want the government to remove insurance subsidies and invest savings directly in hospitals. However, only half (51%) supported eliminating the Medicare levy, which penalizes uninsured taxpayers.
Six in 10 people feel they can afford an unexpected week of hospital treatment using the public system or insurance.
Mark Butler, Monique Ryan, Bronny Taylor, Priya Alexander and Johan Hari will be joining us for a Q+A panel tonight at 9:35pm on ABC TV. ABC eye view.
