Gillard revamps Medicare Gold

Labor linking aged care and Medicare Gold

Labor is working on a revamp of its Medicare Gold health policy including new specialist hospitals for thousands of elderly people to prevent them clogging public hospitals, according to a Page 1 exclusive in The Australian newspaper today( 9 August).

Julie Gillard, Labor’s Shadow Health Minister said the new policy would build on the key 2004 election promise to take over responsibility for health and aged care needs of all people over 75 years old. She hopes the move will dramatically shorten public hospital waiting lists and eliminate $500 million annually in wasted resources.

She said the Federal Government underfunded aged care knowing that aged people unable to find beds would end up in public hospitals which were funded by State Governments.

Her plans include step-down and rehabilitation facilities, and have been welcomed by several state Ministers, and by Catholic Health Australia.