Peter McGauran, the Mayor, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you very much for giving me the opportunity of sharing some very brief thoughts with you about issues of public health, issues of health care in Australia, and the importance of the partnership that exists in health care in Australia between the public health system and the various private contributions, which together produce a much better health system than we sometimes give ourselves credit for.
It';s no exaggeration to say that at both a state and a federal level, health policy and health issues are amongst the most hotly debated in our society. And there is nothing wrong with that because health is fundamental to the happiness and wellbeing and the congeniality of our community and the enjoyment of our lives. And whilst I would be the last person to pretend that Australia';s health system is perfect, I';d be the last person to decry legitimate debate about its future, I sometimes believe that in the flurry of public exchange that goes on, we overlook how much better our health system really is compared to the health systems of most other countries.
I have often said that if you are a battler, it';s better to get sick here in Broadmeadows than the Bronx or Brixton, because the health system of this country is infinitely better than the health systems of most countries with which we seek to make comparisons. Now that doesn';t mean to say it';s perfect, and it doesn';t mean to say that we shouldn';t continue to argue and debate it, but I do sometimes and this is I suppose is as non-political as any politician in my position can ever get. Sometimes when I see stories on evening television about waiting lists and so forth, no matter what state I';m in, no matter what party is in power at a state level, I just sort of close my eyes and I think I can remember, you know, the positions being reversed, where exactly the same things were being said in the past. And I think to myself maybe this is all just a little bit mindless, because in the end we do have to work together as a community and we, as a national government and as a state government, to try and deliver good health outcomes.
Now we do have a fundamentally very sound public hospital system. We can talk about its shortcomings, and I';m sure there are… there';s a big debate going on in different parts of the country about that. But we also have a very, very important contribution from the private sector. I was saying to your guests at my table that on Friday when I was in the Hunter Valley in New South Wales, I opened the new Newcastle Private Hospital which is co-located with the John Hunter Hospital. And now so often the pattern is the co-location of public and private hospitals. And this private hospital is made possible by essentially the work of the largest private health insurance fund, the NIB, which began originally as a closed health fund for the steelworkers of BHP at Newcastle. And because of the changed circumstances of that city, it of course has changed its character and become one of the six largest funds. And this private hospital is the largest regional private hospital in New South Wales.
Now I mention that to underline the point that as so often is the case, we need each other. There should not be a ferocious debate in this country between public and private. Just as the debate between public and private in relation to schools is self-defeating and destructive because we need both, because they are an expression of the fundamental right of choice that Australian parents have. So we need both a public and private component of our health system. And that is why my Government has been a very strong supporter of private health insurance. We';ve put a lot of resources into it. We';ve done that very deliberately because we think people should have the right to privately insure. And because of the strength of private health insurance, we now have a lot more people using private hospitals, and no matter what statistics you might try and use – I don';t mean you, but what one might try and employ – in order to prove to the contrary, it is self-evident as a matter of ordinary logic, if you have more people using private hospitals, they must be taking the load off the public hospital system. I mean it can';t be any other result. They must be. And a growing proportion of operations are being performed, particularly in relation to cancer procedures and many knee and hip replacements, are being performed in private hospitals.
The point simply is you need both. And they reinforce the strength of the other. They should not be seen, and we should not promote the idea, that they are competitors. They should work together. And we in Australia have done a lot of things better than many other countries. Now one of the things that we have done better than most other countries is that we have been able to have more effective public-private partnerships in the delivery of human services. And the two areas that stand out starkly in my experience have been health and education. There is far more cooperation between the public and private sectors and far more mutuality about the contributions they make in this country, than there are in countries with which we make proper comparisons.
And if I have a message today to leave with you, it is that the strength of Australia';s health system is sometimes discounted. We sometimes lapse too readily into a sense of despair and crisis about it. And that is not a self-satisfied observation. It';s a passionately-held belief. But that doesn';t mean to say we shouldn';t as a community put more resources into it. We at a federal level have just announced in the last couple of months a commitment of about $2.9 billion extra over a period of four years into Medicare. Amongst other things, it';s designed to… well it';s not only designed, it does deliver higher rebates for the bulk billing of people who are holders of concession cards and for children under 16, and there is a higher loading for people in the regional and rural areas of Australia. We';ve introduced a new Medicare safety net. We have introduced a number of measures that are designed to bring onstream hundreds more doctors and practice nurses over the next few years, and for the very first time, and I acknowledge the contribution made by Senator Lees and others of the independent Senators, we';re going to extend the Medicare system to the allied health professionals in a number of areas.
Now all of these things represent further enhancements and further improvements, and of course underpinning the health system of this country and underpinning the health system of Victoria is the fact that we have outstanding doctors and other health professionals. It has often been said that this country punches above its weight in many fields. In no field does it punch above its weight more effectively than in the area of medical research and medical science. If you look at the recorded medical breakthroughs and the record of excellence in medical research achievement, the number of Australians is disproportionate to our population, and we have an outstanding record and we do have doctors and other health professionals that are not only the equal, but in my view surpass the skill of those in so many other countries.
So we have a very, very valuable asset. Now medical science has made enormous strides and that is both a virtue and a challenge. It';s a wonderful thing because it is leading people to live longer lives and to live healthier lives, providing they make their own contribution to it by such fundamentally sensible things as a good diet and regular exercise and sensible behaviour in other respects. But it also of course represents a very big challenge because modern equipment and modern research methods are very, very expensive. Now I';m aware of that as Prime Minister, I';m sure that the Federal Treasurer is aware of that and the Health Minister is aware of that, but more importantly than us, people who are charged with the responsibility at a local level of raising resources are also aware of it.
And one of the reasons that I was enthusiastic about participating in today';s lunch when Peter McGauran raised it with me was that I do believe very strongly that we should as far as possible, and to the extent that it makes medical and economic sense, we should as far as possible decentralise the delivery of our health services. And the Cancer Centre that we are supporting at a federal level with a $10 million contribution and which the Victorian Government is supporting with a contribution of $11 million will deliver services to hundreds of people in the valley, the La Trobe valley, that will need those services, will obviate the need for them going to Melbourne. It will as a consequence deliver better outcomes, they will make more sensible decisions about the type of treatment that they need, and they will be in closer proximity to their family members as they go through the very traumatic time in their lives of coping with cancer. And it';s just another opportunity for us to witness the value of cooperation between federal and state governments and also the enlistment of the community.
So I very, very warmly commend this project to you. I';m very happy to support it and I hope in a small way by being here, I know there will be a vigorous local campaign, raising money is never easy no matter what the cause is, but medical research is a great cause and we hope that the example of the contributions of $21 million from the two levels of government will encourage the local community to provide the extra $3.5 million. But it will be a wonderful service and it will be a reminder of the community identity that will surround the centre. We are all proud Australians, above everything else, but we also like a sense of close local identity to our particular communities. And there are, as I go around Australia, there are scores of regional loyalties and regional affinities, and they';re very strong and they';re not just related to things like sporting loyalties and so forth, they';re very strong in so many ways. And this, the La Trobe valley, has a deep sense of local affinity and local loyalty and therefore the facilities are needed to support that, facilities that the local community will take a very special interest in.
So ladies and gentlemen, I wish the project well and I have been shown it, the map. It looks very good, very impressive. I hope you are successful in raising that $3.5 million and it will add mightily to the value of what I believe is fundamentally a very strong and stable health system in this country, and one that Australians should be very proud of, and most of all, be proud of the men and women, the health professionals, the doctors and the nurses and the administrators that deliver the services and look after our wellbeing.
Thank you.
[ends]