Private health insurance is a painfully bad deal – and a costly one
Australia’s private health insurance system is heavily subsidised, increasingly unaffordable and delivers poor value – especially for those on lower incomes.
Recent articles in Health
31 March 2026
Mickey J: an Australian always, quietly, making a big difference
At a time of diminished political leadership, the legacy of Fred Hollows and Michael Johnson shows what practical, principled internationalism can achieve.
26 March 2026
Tuberculosis remains the world’s deadliest infectious disease – Australia’s regional leadership matters
Tuberculosis is preventable and curable, yet remains the world’s deadliest infectious disease. Australia’s regional role is critical to changing that.
20 March 2026
Private health insurance isn’t working – and the numbers show it
Premiums are rising far faster than official increases, coverage is narrowing and hospitals are under strain – Australia’s private health model is failing.
9 March 2026
The human side of AI in childhood cancer: children as the stress test for “good” technology
Artificial intelligence is transforming cancer care, but paediatric oncology shows why technology must be guided by transparency, ethics and the needs of children and families.
20 February 2026
Why Royal Commissions so often fail to deliver reform
Five years after the Royal Commission on Quality and Safety in Aged Care reported, its legacy offers hard-earned lessons about reform, funding, implementation and the limits of inquiry-led change.
17 February 2026
Sobriety, friendship and the quiet power of Alcoholics Anonymous
Alcoholics Anonymous has helped millions of people stop drinking. Drawing on his long friendship with Barry Humphries and the experience of Anthony Hopkins, Ross Fitzgerald reflects on sobriety, friendship and what sustained recovery makes possible.
30 January 2026
Australia’s sugar shame: why we’re falling behind in the fight for our health
Australia once led the world in confronting tobacco harm. On sugar consumption – a major driver of obesity and chronic disease – more than 100 countries are now ahead of us, and health ministers face a critical test.
28 January 2026
Female-only swimming saves lives: the overlooked gap in Australia’s drowning prevention
Female-only swimming sessions are not a cultural luxury. They are a proven, evidence-based public safety measure that too many Australian women still cannot access.
22 January 2026
Australia has clear evidence on women’s pain. The policy challenge is to act on it
A landmark Victorian inquiry has exposed deep, system-wide failures in how women’s pain is treated. The policy response now requires national leadership.
19 January 2026
Britain has banned junk food advertising to kids. There are big lessons for Australia
Britain has moved to limit junk food marketing to children, despite loopholes and lobbying. Australia still hasn’t acted.
11 January 2026
Best of 2025 - Australia faces a looming crisis of older women retiring in poverty. Here’s what we can do
Australia faces a serious challenge. Despite important progress on gender equality over recent decades, a looming crisis now threatens the economic security of older women. Without urgent and bold action, we risk consigning further generations of women to poverty in retirement.
10 January 2026
Best of 2025 - States increase pressure on Commonwealth to address hospital cost increases
Hark back to December 2023. National Cabinet endorsed a historic agreement setting the parameters for future Commonwealth-state sharing of public hospital costs over the next decade.
Catch up on other sections
More from Health
23 October 2025
Dental health – time for a small, cost-effective revolution
29 September 2025
What should Australian Governments do about ‘mental health’?
29 September 2025
How AI-based eye scans can detect high blood sugar, heart disease
27 September 2025
Interview that described the hell Gaza has become
25 September 2025
Government is planning hardship for older Australians living at home
18 September 2025
Climate code blue: Why hospitals must lead the healing of our planet
