January 2015 News

The government will actively seek to address issues surrounding any Medicare reform, after several of the proposed changes have been brought into question.

With doctors in particular reacting with disdain, certain topics will be in focus when the Department of Health discusses the ongoing issues later this month.

Recent research from the Australia Institute (AI) has outlined how over $2 billion could be pumped back into the Australian economy, if general sales tax (GST) was tacked onto private health insurance.

As part of a wider report which focuses on ways to decrease the budget deficit without being hard-hitting to low income families, AI notes that there could be benefits in extending GST to two key sectors - private health insurance and private schools.

The government has recently announced a new initiative which asks Australians to think about how healthy their diets actually are and the effect this can have on overall wellbeing.

A new rating system has been introduced, making it easier for the public to better understand how what they eat can effect their health. Assistant Minister for Health Fiona Nash explained the thinking behind this new Health Star Rating system.

The Australian Government is set to review the rebate on private health insurance premiums for natural therapies undertaken by private health insurance policy holders. The initial plan was drawn up way back in July 2012, with extended delays pushing back the implementation of the review until 1 April this year.