Under-funding is not the main reason for the crisis in Australia’s public hospitals. A far bigger problem is systemic stupidity.

Before the pandemic, Tasmania’s public hospital system was the nation’s standout basket case. But the malaise, rather like a virulent infectious disease, has spread.

Now every state has the same scandals: critically ill patients waiting for ambulances that are ramped outside a hospital, unconscionably long waiting times for elective surgery, bed block and chaos in emergency departments.

Republished from THE POLICY POST May 10, 2024