Health-Care - The Importance of Choice - Part 7

24 Jul
2018

Posted by Evolve College News

Risks to Health Care

In this article, we continue our series on health-care and the choice available to the public. 

In Part 5, we looked at the government announcement to remove the private health insurance rebate from certain complementary (or natural) therapies. In Part 6, we looked at The Labor Party’s announcement that it would remove the GST exemption on those same therapies if it wins office at the next election. 

This week, we look at the wider picture that could potentially impact on the use of complementary health-care. 

Over time, there have been moves or possible moves afoot to reduce or possibly control various aspects of health-care. Some of the voices in that regard have been very vocal, … but are those moves or opinions in the true public interest? In the parts of this series to come, we explore that question – and leave it to you as the reader to discern.

So how does all of this affect Complementary Medicine or Complementary to Medicine therapies? 

Discussions in health-care circles raise questions as to whether a further restriction on complementary health-care is intended as a longer term measure, or if all the individual moves, when cumulatively addressed, have or could have that effect. 

The Government’s removal of the private health insurance rebate, and the Opposition’s announcement to do the same with the GST exemption, signal that there is a possible more general erosion of rights afforded to users of complementary medicine therapies, that could ensue. 

As we reported previously, the removal of remedial massage from the rebate exclusion is not a permanent measure that can be relied upon, especially given that bodies such as the Productivity Commission recommended a blanket exclusion. Read more in our previous series on that matter. 

What the above suggests is that the restriction on such therapies could be an incremental creep, as opposed to a mighty once-off change that eradicates Complementary Medicine and Complementary to Medicine therapies from the health-care system or severely restricts them. 

It is important that, as such incremental changes are rolled out, the public (and practitioners of the therapies affected) are fully informed as to the changes, and their potential overall impact. The purpose in this series, is to highlight the possible effect on Complementary Medicine and Complementary to Medicine therapies – as well as the impact on Conventional Medicine. This news service is subscribed to by in excess of 16,000 people and we take our responsibility to keep readers up to date, seriously.