As the United States debates what to do about health care, it’s been interesting to be in a country with a public health plan. Through the Fulbright, I am eligible to enroll for Australian Medicare. Being no stranger to government programs, I prepared myself for what I figured could be a long, frustrating ordeal…something akin to the hot plate/internet/phone experience.
Enrolling for and using Medicare has been, by far, one of the easiest things I’ve done here. To enroll, I simply showed up at one of the local Medicare administrative offices (of which there are many), took a number, and was out the door with an insurance card within 15 minutes. A couple weeks later, I got an ear infection. I put off making an appointment for a few days, again assuming it was going to be a hassle. But it wasn’t. I called a doctor’s office near our apartment, and was shocked to receive an appointment for the very next day. I showed up for the appointment about 20 minutes early, as is standard practice for first time visits in the U.S. (all that paperwork to fill out!), but there was no need – all I had to do was show them my proof of medicare enrollment, and that was it. No copay, nothing. I saw the doctor within a few minutes – no initial consultation with a nurse or anything – and he was very friendly and professional. He checked out my ear, gave me a prescription for ear drops, and sent me on my way – I was in an out of the office within 10 minutes.
Interestingly, the few Australians I’ve talked to about the public health system have not been incredibly impressed with it. There is a lot of debate about the quality of care provided at public versus private hospitals (public hospitals being those covered by medicare, and private hospitals being those that do not accept medicare’s billing caps), though one friend mentioned that her sister chose to have her baby at a public hospital, and was very happy with the quality of care.
Anyway, it’s been interesting to experience a public health system.
