Bit of mis-spelling and letters left off there, but I hope the message is clear.

You're going a bit overboard with that description of elective surgery there Lef. Much of it is for much less important reasons.

Like leigh. I am a pensioner. I'd get a full pension if I lived in the city, in a moderate value house. As I have 19 acers, used for the kids horsing interests, before they left home, I am a part pensioner. As it's land, not bedrooms that I own, some of my homes value is counted as an asset. I therefor live on less than the pension.

I have had great service from our Qld hospitals, with a couple of cardiac events, although we were not so happy with their treatment of my mother.

I have a bunion, which hurts sometimes. It's hurt since I was at school, playing football. It's a bit of a nuisance.

My youngest daughter had the same bunion, she blames me of course, which is probably true.

She was told that it would take about 2 to 3 years to get anything done about the thing, if she wanted it done publicly.

As a 19 year old sexy young lady, she wants to wear 2 Ft high, well 6 inch high heals. They hurt her bunion, & she did not want to wait 2 or more years, to get it fixed.

It took a bit of a whip around to raise the $5,000 to get the bunion fixed privately, & she'll be paying money back to a couple of siblings for a while.

We have no complaint. I can see absolutely no reason why the tax payer should fund my daughters chioce of foot wear. In fact I think there is far too much asked of the tax payer today. It is about time we asked a lot more people to fund their wish list for themselves.

I think the ability to wear high heals, or play football should be included in this.

Well! What a collection of out and out moaners, never a constructive comment on the article by the two eminent authors who very obviously know what they are writing about.
As a user of public hospitals over more years than I care to remember, I also believe that Mr Rudd's proposition is most certainly a large positive step forward in the Australian public hospital system, a step, or series of such steps it urgently needs.
Mr Abbott is a negative posturer, his previous, very dismal, record as health minister speaks for itself. Mr Abbott unfortunately is a religious bigot and again unfortunately brings his religious beliefs into his everyday parliamentary life to the detriment of the Australian public health system.
The Australian Public Health system certainly needs positive revision and the Rudd government will, I believe, do this provided they are not sabotaged by the likes of Mr Abbott and his ilk, who would most certainly appear to have a hidden Private Health System agenda.

"Street Angels, Home devils"

This phrase is used to describe people who are nice people publicly and at home turn into devils.

This applies equally to our politicans, in that they want to appear publicly to be angels, yet privately their behaviour is less than desirable.

Publicly for about 2 decades politicans have been promising to fix out public hospital system, yet secretly have applied the financial screws and cut public hospital expenditure. Secretly the Labor Premiers would prefer for us all to use the private health insurance in private hospitals, there by reducing demand on the public system, reduced demand equals reduced costs and money saved by the states can be used for pork barrelling and nepotism.

Politcal promises are cheap and worthless without doing the really valuable work.

Rudd sounded good, by like all illusionist it will be all smoke and mirrors.

I say it would be a good thing to have the health system taken over by federal, another reason for them to look after the system, as it is their office that is on the line. One can not blame the other, Victoria won't be able to claim they are being short changed with 30% of Victorias funding going to Queensland.
Victoria would benefit from the move, by getting all of our GST from the federal:

An interesting article, and one that makes me worry even more that Tony Abbott should ever be in a position to affect health care in this country.

The only way we will ever have an effective health system in this country is if private health cover is only taken out to use on special, non essential health items.

For example Private health would be taken out for 'extra' health services such as chiropractors or aromatherapists, as well as elective surgeries for cosmetic reasons, or for those who only want a hospital private room and bathroom.

All other hospital patients should be covered by medicare and a small payment each time they go to a GP or hospital.
As soon as hospital care was made 'free' for those without private health, we started to see a slide in conditions.
Only those on a healthcare card or pension card should have 'free' hospital or GP care.

Why is it that people are prepared to pay for the veterinary fees for their animals, but not for themselves or their children?
If people had to pay a small fee each time they went to a GP or hospital, maybe we wouldn't have so many time wasters and malingerers as we do now.