Fed: Democrats call for inquiry into Medicare changes
MELBOURNE, April 28 AAP - The Australian Democrats today signalled major changes wouldbe needed to the federal government's Medicare reforms for its support.
Democrats health spokeswoman Senator Lyn Allison called for a Senate inquiry into the$917 million package, saying the proposal would have a devastating effect on low and middleincome earners.
"While there are some aspects of the proposals which we might be able to support, byand large it needs major change before we will consider doing so," Senator Allison toldreporters.
She said the Howard government's proposals were a step towards privatising the health system.
"We see this as a way of allowing doctors to massively increase their fees, this happenedin the United States and it's likely to happen here," she said.
Senator Allison said the government had to persuade people on middle and low incomesthat the reforms would not make the cost of health prohibitive for the Democrats' support.
"I doubt at this stage they can do that, but we'll give them the opportunity," she said.
Senator Allison said the government was trying to destabilise the Medicare system.
"Medicare has been too popular for the government to publicly oppose," she said.
"Instead, they have relied on a strategy of allowing the system to run down so rebatesto doctors have not kept pace with costs, and come up with a strategy that has suitedtheir underlying agenda to `fix' Medicare."
Senator Allison said the party was in talks with Labor for their support for a Senate inquiry.
AAP svm/dk/ph/br
KEYWORD: MEDICARE DEMOCRATS
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