Under the new law, the legal age for cigarette sales will increase by a year each year from 2027. This means people born from 2009 will never be able to legally buy cigarettes in the UK.
Allowing pharmacists to dispense nicotine vapes without a prescription would ensure people who are using them to quit smoking could access them legally, while preventing inappropriate sales to youth.
Australia’s aged care system is undergoing significant change, but is still governed by an act more than 25 years old. Can the government meet its mid-year deadline for the next round of reforms?
The health care world has changed a lot in 40 years, but Medicare hasn’t. Here are three areas for radical forms to the system that will achieve its aims of universal health care for all Australians.
National Cabinet is meeting today to discuss hospital funding, and the interconnected issues of NDIS reform and GST allocation. But how are hospitals actually funded? And what’s GST got to do with it?
Ben White, Queensland University of Technology and Lindy Willmott, Queensland University of Technology
The first Australian Capital Territory voluntary assisted dying bill in more than 25 years was tabled in parliament yesterday. So what will MPs vote on? And how is it different to state legislation?
Eating too much salt is bad for our health. Governments and food manufacturers have a big role to play in reducing the salt content of Australians’ diets.
Vaccine policies fall on a spectrum, from mandates to recommendations. Deciding what to use and when is not so much a science but a balancing act between personal autonomy and public good.
A limited number of specialists are able to diagnose and treat ADHD, making it difficult to even start the process of getting diagnosed. Should GPs play a greater role?
Yes, savings from increased participation in private insurance outweigh the costs the government incurs by subsidising private health insurance rebates. But rebates can be better targeted.
A new review of Australian health care workers’ scope of practice should focus on expanding pharmacists prescribing for stable conditions and long-term medications, under the direction of a GP.
A social insurance model would use compulsory contributions from worker salaries to cover the cost of aged care services. But it’s not a silver bullet to fix our aged-care funding crisis.
One proposal to fund the rising costs of aged care is a Medicare-style levy. However, this seemingly neat solution isn’t the answer to our aged care funding problems. Here’s why.
Aged care is one of the government’s biggest ongoing funding challenges. But for a sustainable system, we need to ensure everyone is paying their fair share. Here’s how to make it more equitable.
MyMedicare is a new voluntary scheme that allows patients to register with their usual GP. How will it work? And how might it benefit patients? Here’s what we know so far.
Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne