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Sustaining Medicare through consumer choice of health funds: lessons from the Netherlands
Author(s) -
Stoelwinder Johannes U,
Paolucci Francesco
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
medical journal of australia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.904
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1326-5377
pISSN - 0025-729X
DOI - 10.5694/j.1326-5377.2009.tb02671.x
Subject(s) - business , politics , state (computer science) , finance , public economics , health insurance , consumer choice , process (computing) , health care , actuarial science , marketing , economic growth , economics , political science , operating system , algorithm , computer science , law
The current escalation in costs of Australia's health care system does not appear to be sustainable. Sustainable financing requires direct engagement of consumers — instead of the current political process driven by special interest groups, targeted at gaining a larger share of the federal and state governments’ budgets. Reforms in the Netherlands, directed at achieving universal insurance with consumer choice of health fund, provide valuable lessons for Australia on how to design sustainable financing.