Message:

 As the public one payor health system is debated in US, here is a piece from June 7 Sidney Morning Herald, about failing of Australian system.

 http://www.smh.com.au/national/wait-for-it-surgery-list-now-even-longer-20090606-bz2y.html

Wait for it: surgery list now even longer

EXCLUSIVE

HOSPITAL waiting lists have blown out to the longest in four years but the Government is unfazed, believing waiting times are a better performance guide.

While the State Opposition is irate that the latest Health Department statistics show 62,890 people were waiting for surgery in NSW public hospitals in the March quarter, Health Minister John Della Bosca said things were improving.

He said the average waiting time was 2.66 months compared with 2.75 months for the same quarter last year when 58,839 people were on the waiting list.

"The average waiting time has fallen by just over 3 per cent between the two corresponding periods - we are actually doing better," Mr Della Bosca said.

"This is despite the additional pressure on emergency care staff.

"According to the latest data, 107,952 patients were admitted to hospital through emergency departments during this period, a 1.6 per cent increase on the same period last year."

Mr Della Bosca said the Government was expanding out-of-hospital care programs that would alleviate pressure on emergency departments and free up more resources for planned surgery. And the federal budget allocated $185.3 million over the next two years to provide more "surgery services" for patients on NSW waiting lists, he said.

But Opposition health spokeswoman Jillian Skinner said the latest figures were the worst since mid-2005 when 63,173 people were waiting for surgery. They probably did not reflect the reality, which was likely to be far worse, she said.

"While this figure is very high, it's probably just the tip of the iceberg given the amount of well-documented manipulation of the waiting list figures by the State Government," Ms Skinner said.

"Tens of thousands of patients are waiting because the Rees Government slashed millions from the health system in the mini-budget. The Government has failed to drive down hospital waiting lists."

A Coalition government would "de-politicise" waiting-list statistics by establishing an independent bureau, as recommended by the Garling Report, to monitor and report the figures, she said.

The figures show the number of patients waiting for surgery at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital grew from 575 to 653 but the waiting time was slightly shorter. At Royal North Shore the number of patients waiting for surgery was virtually unchanged but the time on the list was actually reduced.

At Albury, there were 714 on the list compared to 467 at the same time last year, with waiting times stretching from an average of 1.77 months to 1.85 months. In Batemans Bay, the number grew from 608 to 699 with waiting times growing from an average of 5.68 months to 6.66 months.

Patients in Dubbo were waiting an average of 3.29 months compared to 2.2 months last year, and the number on the waiting list grew from 685 to 835.