Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Government Business in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I really challenge the Liberal Party to find someone who is earning $51,000 and who thinks they are, in fact, a high-income earner. In regard to the private health insurance, the equation is simple: if there are private health insurance companies that have good packages to offer then they should offer them in the competitive market. If the opposition are serious about this they should tell me about those people out there who are earning $51,000 and think they are high-income earners. Do you support that proposition? That is what you should make clear. This is about giving people choice; something that the opposition seem to have lost along their way, but it is not surprising given the way Work Choices went.

When somebody takes out a private health insurance policy just to avoid getting hit with a tax slug there is no real choice in that. There are people out there who do pay for a $500 policy, not because they want it but because it means paying less than they would pay in tax. That was the position that the previous government put in respect of the Medicare surcharge levy. Of course there are people who do support the private health insurance rebates—30 per cent, 35 per cent, 40 per cent. As we have always said we would, we have given people incentives to take out private health insurance. We have not hit them with a tax slug that they cannot afford.

The potential impact on public hospitals was considered. The potential impact on private hospitals was considered. According to the 2002-06 data, there were about 4.5 million admissions to public hospitals, 3.8 million public patients, 400,000 private patients and 180,000 other patients such as veterans. Whether those people who choose not to retain or take up private health insurance end up seeking treatment in public hospitals, we do not believe that they will make a significant difference— (Time expired)