"SIKO
australia has its faults, lots of them. but so does america. their emergency departments are just as full like ours. their wards are just as packed and frantic like ours. they sometimes have to wait for beds just like ours. id rather have australian healthcare because i wouldnt have any in the US due to the cost of insurance and co pays. the problems i have with my hospital is not because of the federal funding system, its because of the state that is put in charge of running the hospital [admin side of things]. we have a corrupt labor government in at the moment and they are ruining everything from hospitals to transport. and believe me, the money is there. they made a fortune in the last budget. i bet if the federal government took all control off the states things would be improved greatly. the federal government funds medicare, which is the treatment side of things and imo that is doing just fine. the money is NOT on the brink of running out as some would like to believe. universal healthcare can work when done properly. just because australia and uk have done a crap job it doesnt mean it cant be done. its all about prioritising which we have failed to do. its goes 1 - sport 2 - beer 3 - bbqs 4 - immigrants 5 - ugly buildings...... 28533 - health.
my idea of a perfect system would be where those who can easily afford private health insurance are forced to take it up and use it and the rest who use public should be made to pay small fees everytime a hospital service is used. and NO ONE with minor complaints should be let into EDs. god damn i hate it when people with the 'sniffles' come into the ED when there is an after hours gp just down the road! states should also be watched closely by the federal government to make sure they are spending enough money on health instead of blowing it on stupid things like sports stadiums and unecessary train lines.
thats all from me on this thread. i know where its going to end up.