Albanese’s bulk billing pledge renews the promise at the heart of Medicare | Bill Bowtell

Forty years ago Bob Hawke made access to healthcare a right, not a privilege. After decades of depradations, Labor’s reforms are putting Medicare back on track When the Hawke Labor government implemented Medicare in 1984, it established a new foundational principle for the Australian health system – that access to health services for all is a right, not a privilege.Since then, successive Labor governments have sought to deliver the simple proposition that all Australians, regardless of where they live, should have timely access to the highest quality medical services and advice based solely on clinical need, rather than on their financial capacity to pay. Continue reading...