Health roundtable
30 October 2015
The Business Council is determined to re-establish a dynamic, informed, national debate on health reform that engages with the challenge of reshaping the healthcare system for a sustainable future. To build momentum, the Business Council and member company Australian Unity convened a roundtable of health policy experts and business leaders in October 2015 to look afresh at the challenge.
ABC Radio Presenter Dr Norman Swan chaired a panel discussion titled ‘Can We Save Health Care?’ on the day. Footage is available below
Australia faces looming fiscal pressures, and this challenge needs to be addressed through program redesign. We believe health is the most critical program to address because it accounts for 15 per cent of total Commonwealth direct spending, and 25 per cent of total state spending. It is also vital to a productive economy and high living standards.
Redesign is about delivering better services, better outcomes, and more efficient delivery. We think the starting point is to reposition the conversation, with a clear focus on problem identification, cost drivers, incentive design and information transparency.
The Discussion Starter below provides an organising framework for discussion by outlining key statistics on the performance of Australia’s health system relative to other industrialised nations. It does not seek to prescribe specific measures to improve Australia’s health system.
Two further documents are a technical supplement to the Discussion Starter, and a report on key mega-trends confronting the health system.
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