Post by CrashPost by Rich80105http://youtu.be/sGMgkO1XFIw
Hopefully not - our largest health insurer does run hospitals, but not
yet at a level that dominates healthcare, but putting the industry
into more "for profit" organisations is where Act1stNat do appear to
be taking healthcare, and schools, and universities, and . . .
There is no connection between healthcare services provision in the
USA and here and nothing we can learn from that unfortunate event.
Of course there are - our population needs much the same services as
are needed in the USA, we suffer from similar emergency and hospital
needs, and we have a mixture of private and public provision of
services - albeit arranged in a different way than in the USA. We also
use the same pharmaceuticals as the USA, often from USA providers . .
.
We are seeing growth in provision of hospital services through
privately owned hospitals - three private hospitals in Wellington have
either recently expanded or have buildings under construction now; and
there is similar expansion of private provision elsewhere. In relation
to dental services, the increase in student fees under a previous
National-led government (and not reversed subsequently) has meant that
most newly qualified dentists are not able to afford to purchase the
equipment needed to practice; private capital has led to many now
working for a corporate privately owned provider. Groupings of private
medical doctors are becoming more common, either owned by a small
group of doctors, or owned by a corporate entity that is part owned by
shareholders that are not medical practitioners. Prescription charges
have been re-introduced, and costs for GP visits are now nearly
universal and are increasing at a faster rate than inflation.
We have a lower percentage of the population with private medical
insurance than either Australia or the USA, but I suspect the number
trying to hold such cover is currently increasing for working New
Zealanders - those in retirement know that premiums are growing so
fast with age that beyond about age 70 most New Zealanders cannot
afford premiums.
the real concern is that public hospitals are increasingly not able to
see patients promptly when they present for assessment and treatment,
and there is concern that we are moving directly towards a USA-type
two level system
Post by CrashI see nothing wrong with evolving government provision of services -
do you?