The Australian Medical Association pledged yesterday that it was not trying to destroy Medicare.
Its newly elected president, Brendan Nelson, said, “”The AMA has no agenda to see Medicare dismantled or pulled apart.”
Dr Nelson was elected yesterday in the place of Dr Bruce Shepherd who stood down as president after three years to return to his practice full-time. His election marks a change in the AMA’s approach at the same time as the Federal Government’s approach has changed with the appointment of Senator Graham Richardson as Minister for Health, replacing Brian Howe.
Dr Shepherd was seen as a determined campaigner for private medicine, and was widely seen as having aligned the AMA with the Coalition during the last election campaign. Mr Howe made it clear that there would be no change to Medicare.
Dr Nelson said Senator Richardson had made it clear that the Government was prepared to listen to what doctors had recognised that Medicare had weaknesses.
The AMA resolved unanimously at its annual national conference at the Lakeside Hotel to co-operate with the Government in overcoming Medicare’s short-comings. Dr Nelson said the resolution showed the profession’s good faith.
Dr Nelson said that with a change of president the AMA did not change its policies or values, but there would be a different of emphasis.
“”There will be an emphasis on social issues as well as on the independence of the medical profession,” he said.
The AMA wanted to influence the Australian community with a higher profile on tobacco, the health effects of unemployment, Aboriginal health and alcohol as well as the cost of health and health insurance.
The AMA would appoint a full-time person for Aboriginal health matters. The AMA wanted to see an end to the differential in the quality of health care between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people.
The AMA would appoint someone with an understanding of Aboriginal culture who would work in co-operation with Aboriginal organisations.
On Medicare, Dr Nelson said, “”What we are determined to do is see that the demands on Medicare are reduced.”
Wealthy people should take out private insurance and not be a burden on Medicare and the public-hospital system.
“”We will work with the Government to see that the system works,” he said.
Before the election, the AMA had a duty to speak out when there were 100,000 in waiting lists and the Government said there would be no change.
It still had a duty to speak out, but Dr Nelson hoped to that it would not have to do that so often, no Senator Richardson was minister and listening. Dr Nelson hoped that the AMA would not have to revert to issuing a press release every time it wanted to talk to the Government.
On the AMA’s political alignment, he said if the Labor Party would encourage more wealthy people to insure, it would get the AMA’s support and acclamation.
“”It is not a popularity contest. It is what is right for patients and the community,” he said.
The AMA would align with any political grouping that had the right policy.
Dr Nelson wanted to improve the image and standing of doctors. He wanted them to be seen as well collectively as they were individually.
Doctors were caring and committed. Dr Nelson said that as vice-president and president of the Tasmanian branch he had campaigned against tobacco advertisements at sporting venues and the exploitation of women by hotels promoting alcohol, but that did not get the publicity.
“”Ninety percent of my time is spent on issues that have nothing to do with doctors’ income,” he said.
On GP numbers, he said we did not know how many too many GPs there were. It would be premature, however, to cull GPs without waiting for the results of recent measures to feed through. The number in medical schools had fallen from 1500 to 1200 in the past five years and there was a quota on foreign doctors. As well, 55 per cent of graduates were now women, many of whom were practising part-time, and there was a trend among men towards more part-time.
Dr Nelson, at 34, is the youngest president in the AMA’s history, and the first Tasmanian. Dr David Weedon, a Queensland pathologist and expert on skin-cancer pathology, was elected vice-president. Professor Priscilla Kincaid-Smith was returned as chair of the AMA council and Dr Ross Glasson was returned as treasurer.