Big private health insurers are snapping up GP clinics and pushing telehealth 'deals' that sound cheap for their members—but this is the tip of the iceberg toward full US-style managed care in Australia.
With Medicare rebates already too low and a GP shortage biting, insurers can lure doctors away with better pay, leaving everyone else with fewer options and longer waits.
The result? Less patient choice, insurer-directed referrals to their own networks, and practitioners able to charge patients more out-of-pocket as bulk billing erodes and a two-tier system takes hold. Profits over people—classic. We need stronger guardrails to protect universal Medicare, not let corporate capture make healthcare even more expensive and unequal.
#medicare #healthcareforall #aussiepolitics #auspol
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-03-30/major-insurers-buying-up-gp-clinics-could-be-tip-of-managed-care/106491728