A new prescription
Sir: It is maddening to see the British people being refused face-to-face GP appointments and subjected to a form of health rationing that should have ended decades ago (‘Dr No’, 12 June). In Australia a Labour government solved the problem in 1975 by separating payment for healthcare from provision of healthcare. The government gave everyone a Medicare card that could be presented to any accredited healthcare provider. The provider would be paid at a set rate per procedure and send the bill to the government. The result is a truly responsive healthcare system where the patient comes first, is treated with respect and courted by a competitive and creative ecosystem of public, private and third-sector providers. Supply meets demand, unlike in the UK.
If Britain adopted an NHS card that could be used with any provider, queues and rationing would end and healthcare would remain free. This is a workable solution to the UK’s underperforming healthcare sector.
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