Let us hope that the wise people at the Reserve Bank got their decision right on Tuesday when they lowered interest rates to an all time low. The intention was to stimulate the economy by putting a little more money in the pockets of the public and the consequent increase in spending flowing on to investment and job creation. In all probability, it will deliver very mixed results.
The self funded retirees will not be going on wild spending sprees. In fact the drop in income flowing from their investments will see some applying for a part pension for the first time, and there is a danger that desperate people will be tempted to give serious thought to very insecure offers that promise higher profit returns.
Those with existing home mortgages are also unlikely to lower their monthly repayments. The wise will use this opportunity to speed up the reduction in capital owed - and create a buffer against unforeseen future circumstances. The more equity they have in the home they hope to one day fully own, the more insulation against swings in the money market.
The big danger is that this rate reduction will fuel the bubble that has expanded home prices to an insanity level. In particular, prices in Sydney are way out of kilter with the rest of Australia and this phenomenon is duplicated in many overseas cities. A similar replication exists in London.
The median Sydney price of a home is now over $900,000 and there is every chance that it will soon hit the million mark - and that means first home buyers need to get a foot on the rung of the ownership ladder or they will be forever priced out. There is a danger that many will beg, borrow or steal enough to cobble together the minimum deposit lenders require and take the plunge with mortgage repayments that cripple their income level.
The housing market is very like that old parlour game of "Musical Chairs ". The loser is always the one left standing when the music stops - and in the housing market that is when prices stop rising and for sale signs become a glut. It would be a very brave person who believes that the present low interest rates will hold well into the future - and that the Australian economy will remain free of cyclical downturns.
The history book says otherwise ! The world economy was experiencing a boom prior to 2008 and the slicing and dicing of unwise home mortgages into investment packages granted AAA rating by the security industry suddenly threw the money market into a spin - from which we are still recovering. At other times, just a rumour going the rounds can set off a disastrous run on the stock exchange. Nobody has been able to factually explain what set off the chain of events that in 1929 sent the whole world into what became known as the "Great Depression "!
Just as sure as God made little green apples we will see interest rates rise and there will be changes between bull and bear markets on the stock exchange. The only thing inexplicable is the timing in which these events will occur. It is also an inevitability that such changes will be disastrous to some people and that others will actually gain prosperity from such adversity.
The pundits will pontificate and we will get varying shades of opinion of just what these changes in interest rates will deliver - and how they will play out on the world stage. The wise will do their own thinking - and factor in the worst case scenario when making decisions !
Thursday, 7 May 2015
Wednesday, 6 May 2015
Sheer Arrogance !
It seems to be the prevailing attitude of police on the world scene. They never admit that they were wrong - and they never apologise. Such is the verbiage coming out of the aftermath of the Indonesian execution of Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran.
The officer who made the decision to tip off the Indonesian authorities and set in motion the arrests that led to two Australians facing the firing squad admits " How in the past ten years I have agonised over that decision " - but then goes on to say " Even with the benefit of hindsight he would more than likely have made the same decision " !
The Australian Federal Police ( AFP ) grudgingly admit that "Guidelines are in place to prevent AFP pursuing some transnational crime in case more Australians receive the death penalty " ! Those same guidelines protected those in Australian custody from being deported to another country if it still legislated for the death penalty as a possible outcome. There is a very thin line between refusing deportation - and willingly putting an Australian citizen in danger of the death penalty for an intended crime where that punishment exists.
The sad thing is that the Indonesian police were completely unaware of the attempt to bring heroin into Australia strapped to the bodies of these drug mules. In all probability they would have successfully boarded planes and the AFP could have pounced at the Sydney airport terminal and made the arrests - and put the Bali Nine before Australian courts.
In all fairness, the AFP would not have expected an execution outcome. A very different president with a more humane attitude was in office in Indonesia ten years ago, but such is the way of politics. A change of government brings a new attitude- and in this case - a very different outcome.
Sadly, the father of one of the Bali Nine tipped off the AFP about his sons intentions with the expectation that this would prevent this drug run from becoming a reality. The AFP now claim that they were aware of this coming event from information gained from two other sources, and it is now unlikely that any other parent will adopt a similar course of action to prevent a family member pursuing a dangerous criminal activity.
It is also certain that none of the Bali Nine had an expectation that they would receive other than a stiff prison sentence if caught. The Schapelle Corby conviction had filled magazine covers for years and she became something of a celebrity prisoner, constantly visited by her family and regularly making new headlines. Birthdays were celebrated with a party within prison walls and on numerous occasions she seemed to be granted "leave "to visit her hairdresser or seek further legal advice. The grim aspect of Indonesians prisons quickly became opaque.
The entire Bali Nine episode will now fade into history with many recriminations about "what might have been "! Hopefully, we may have learned something and that will lead to wiser decisions in the future, but there is a unmistakeable tendency for all aspects of policing to immediately retreat behind a wall of defensive arrogance any time their actions are questioned.
There is a rock solid attitude of denial. They are never wrong, irrespective of the evidence - and they never apologise - and this does much to create the "them and us " attitude that prevails between police and the public.
We could achieve a better relationship if the police attitude changed and they admitted that they are also human - and faced up to unfortunate outcomes with that magic word - Sorry !
The officer who made the decision to tip off the Indonesian authorities and set in motion the arrests that led to two Australians facing the firing squad admits " How in the past ten years I have agonised over that decision " - but then goes on to say " Even with the benefit of hindsight he would more than likely have made the same decision " !
The Australian Federal Police ( AFP ) grudgingly admit that "Guidelines are in place to prevent AFP pursuing some transnational crime in case more Australians receive the death penalty " ! Those same guidelines protected those in Australian custody from being deported to another country if it still legislated for the death penalty as a possible outcome. There is a very thin line between refusing deportation - and willingly putting an Australian citizen in danger of the death penalty for an intended crime where that punishment exists.
The sad thing is that the Indonesian police were completely unaware of the attempt to bring heroin into Australia strapped to the bodies of these drug mules. In all probability they would have successfully boarded planes and the AFP could have pounced at the Sydney airport terminal and made the arrests - and put the Bali Nine before Australian courts.
In all fairness, the AFP would not have expected an execution outcome. A very different president with a more humane attitude was in office in Indonesia ten years ago, but such is the way of politics. A change of government brings a new attitude- and in this case - a very different outcome.
Sadly, the father of one of the Bali Nine tipped off the AFP about his sons intentions with the expectation that this would prevent this drug run from becoming a reality. The AFP now claim that they were aware of this coming event from information gained from two other sources, and it is now unlikely that any other parent will adopt a similar course of action to prevent a family member pursuing a dangerous criminal activity.
It is also certain that none of the Bali Nine had an expectation that they would receive other than a stiff prison sentence if caught. The Schapelle Corby conviction had filled magazine covers for years and she became something of a celebrity prisoner, constantly visited by her family and regularly making new headlines. Birthdays were celebrated with a party within prison walls and on numerous occasions she seemed to be granted "leave "to visit her hairdresser or seek further legal advice. The grim aspect of Indonesians prisons quickly became opaque.
The entire Bali Nine episode will now fade into history with many recriminations about "what might have been "! Hopefully, we may have learned something and that will lead to wiser decisions in the future, but there is a unmistakeable tendency for all aspects of policing to immediately retreat behind a wall of defensive arrogance any time their actions are questioned.
There is a rock solid attitude of denial. They are never wrong, irrespective of the evidence - and they never apologise - and this does much to create the "them and us " attitude that prevails between police and the public.
We could achieve a better relationship if the police attitude changed and they admitted that they are also human - and faced up to unfortunate outcomes with that magic word - Sorry !
Tuesday, 5 May 2015
" Chop Chop " Tax Dodge !
We were a brave country back in 2012 when we led the world by forcing the tobacco industry to adopt plain packaging with lurid health warnings and a big hike in tobacco prices to encourage smokers to kick that deadly habit. As predicted, it spawned a surge of illegal nicotine by way of the "underground economy "and now it is estimated that 14.5% of all tobacco smoked in Australia is an illicit product - and that the tax evaded is costing the treasury $ 1.35 Billion a year.
The bad news is getting worse ! The availability of smuggled tobacco has recently increased by thirty percent and it seems that it is freely available at many corner stores. In Sydney, the suburbs of Cabramatta, Campsie and Fairfield are hot spots, despite draconian fines for any outlet selling even a single packet of unlicensed tobacco.
Tobacco availability takes two forms. "Chop Chop " is loose shredded tobacco which requires the user to "roll their own " cigarette. This should please the health industry because hand rolled cigarettes are less in volume than factory cigarettes and have the added bonus of emitting less sidestream smoke. In the distant past, they were the preferred form of tobacco for those seeking low cost nicotine satisfaction.
What must alarm the tax man is that chop chop has a 53% grasp of the illicit tobacco market in this country - and it is mostly an Australian grown product. Tobacco has been a legitimate farm crop in Queensland and New South Wales and when " Big Tobacco " stopped buying because of slowing sales the farm industry sought other customers. What is reaching the public is a mix of home grown tobacco and imports smuggled in from Asia.
Cigarettes sold in packet form are entirely a product that has escaped detection by customs. The packets are emblazoned with brand logos and contain absolutely no health warnings. When a smoker pulls out a packet of cigarettes and they lack the dull colour demanded of the legitimate product, an observer can be sure that these are illegals. The prices varies, but is usually below $10 a packet, making it very attractive when compared to the legitimate price structure.
What is so attractive to the criminal industry is the ratio of risk in relation to profit. Get caught smuggling heroin and you spend a long term in prison, or in some cases you might even get the death penalty. There is also the social cost. The family of a narcotics smuggler could expect to be shunned by society, but somehow making a buck by bringing in tobacco brings an image of far distant days when getting luxury goods past the government men toting blunderbusses was the fare of schoolboy heroes.
The problem is - as our narcotics cops readily agree - that the sheer volume of trade in this twenty-first century makes a watertight border impossible. Only a small fraction of container traffic is inspected and busts are usually the result of tactical information gathered internally and overseas. The criminal gangs are finding that nicotine smuggling attracts less heat from the authorities - and it finds a willing customer base that delivers handsome profits with less risk.
No doubt this revelation will auger a blitz on the shops that trade in smuggled goods and the courts will make a few examples to deter others - and the farm industry may find themselves questioned about the disposal of whatever crops they have recently cultivated. There will be the usual pressure from the health industry to keep the tobacco fight relevant, but the main damage is being done to the bottom line over at treasury.
$1.35 billion would fill a lot of black holes in the budget, but getting it in is a rather different matter. That comes up against the first law of commerce - Supply and Demand. Wherever there is demand - supply is certain to follow, and in this case it is a matter of price that is the attraction. There is plenty of legal tobacco on offer - but the price deters people and they seek a cheaper product.
It simply gave the people who make their living supplying the drug trade an opportunity to diversify - and offer a safer item of merchandise !
The bad news is getting worse ! The availability of smuggled tobacco has recently increased by thirty percent and it seems that it is freely available at many corner stores. In Sydney, the suburbs of Cabramatta, Campsie and Fairfield are hot spots, despite draconian fines for any outlet selling even a single packet of unlicensed tobacco.
Tobacco availability takes two forms. "Chop Chop " is loose shredded tobacco which requires the user to "roll their own " cigarette. This should please the health industry because hand rolled cigarettes are less in volume than factory cigarettes and have the added bonus of emitting less sidestream smoke. In the distant past, they were the preferred form of tobacco for those seeking low cost nicotine satisfaction.
What must alarm the tax man is that chop chop has a 53% grasp of the illicit tobacco market in this country - and it is mostly an Australian grown product. Tobacco has been a legitimate farm crop in Queensland and New South Wales and when " Big Tobacco " stopped buying because of slowing sales the farm industry sought other customers. What is reaching the public is a mix of home grown tobacco and imports smuggled in from Asia.
Cigarettes sold in packet form are entirely a product that has escaped detection by customs. The packets are emblazoned with brand logos and contain absolutely no health warnings. When a smoker pulls out a packet of cigarettes and they lack the dull colour demanded of the legitimate product, an observer can be sure that these are illegals. The prices varies, but is usually below $10 a packet, making it very attractive when compared to the legitimate price structure.
What is so attractive to the criminal industry is the ratio of risk in relation to profit. Get caught smuggling heroin and you spend a long term in prison, or in some cases you might even get the death penalty. There is also the social cost. The family of a narcotics smuggler could expect to be shunned by society, but somehow making a buck by bringing in tobacco brings an image of far distant days when getting luxury goods past the government men toting blunderbusses was the fare of schoolboy heroes.
The problem is - as our narcotics cops readily agree - that the sheer volume of trade in this twenty-first century makes a watertight border impossible. Only a small fraction of container traffic is inspected and busts are usually the result of tactical information gathered internally and overseas. The criminal gangs are finding that nicotine smuggling attracts less heat from the authorities - and it finds a willing customer base that delivers handsome profits with less risk.
No doubt this revelation will auger a blitz on the shops that trade in smuggled goods and the courts will make a few examples to deter others - and the farm industry may find themselves questioned about the disposal of whatever crops they have recently cultivated. There will be the usual pressure from the health industry to keep the tobacco fight relevant, but the main damage is being done to the bottom line over at treasury.
$1.35 billion would fill a lot of black holes in the budget, but getting it in is a rather different matter. That comes up against the first law of commerce - Supply and Demand. Wherever there is demand - supply is certain to follow, and in this case it is a matter of price that is the attraction. There is plenty of legal tobacco on offer - but the price deters people and they seek a cheaper product.
It simply gave the people who make their living supplying the drug trade an opportunity to diversify - and offer a safer item of merchandise !
Monday, 4 May 2015
Preventable Deaths !
The message couldn't be clearer. " Never drive, cycle or walk through floodwater "! Australia is a big continent and there is a certain inevitability about rain storms happening on a regular basis from the Pacific Ocean coast to the waters of the Indian Ocean in our west. With little warning we may encounter flooded streets in a city or covered country roads - and the rising death toll seems relentless.
Friday's Queensland storm saw five people die in their vehicles as they tried to cross a flooded causeway. This involved three vehicles, and significantly two were four wheel drives and the other a heavy utility. Perhaps the advertising for the popular SUV range is leading owners into danger. The image portrayed is a "go anywhere " vehicle and the pictures shown usually feature "grunt "- and making light work of almost impossible terrain.
What is depressing to police and SES crews is the reckless indifference many drivers display to signs that roads are closed or warning indicators of depth. So many people have a selfish desire to continue their journey despite the obstacles and in many cases this involves someone else risking their own life in a rescue attempt.
Floodwaters can be deceptive. The depth may be within the capability of the vehicle, but if that water is flowing fast it completely alters the picture. Flood crests are an added danger and the only finality that applies to a flood situation is "expect the unexpected " !
This year we have seen an unusual number of cyclones cross the Australian coast and there have been an above average number of storm events delivering heavy rain. It is quite possible that this is geared to global warming and some scientists predict that we will encounter a raised storm cycle in the years ahead. Flooded roads has always been an Australian experience - and it seems that we had better learn to live with it.
The big question is - how do we achieve that end ? The television nightly news shows drivers barging through city streets inundated by sudden rain - and all it takes is one vehicle to stall and block the flow. There will usually be a time gap before barricades can be erected to close country roads and in many cases drivers either remove them or outflank them to continue their journey. It seems that an attitude of defiance prevails wherever it involves floodwater. Drivers insist in making their own evaluation - and taking that final decision.
It seems to be a fact of life that making people obey laws is dependent on extracting a penalty for disobedience. The obvious deterrance would be a refusal of insurance cover whenever a vehicle is deliberately driven through a flood and suffers loss or damage. That would not apply to parked vehicles caught in a flood and would specifically come into force whenever a vehicle was driven past a road closed barrier.
It seems that it may take a financial penalty to reduce what are certainly otherwise preventable deaths !
Friday's Queensland storm saw five people die in their vehicles as they tried to cross a flooded causeway. This involved three vehicles, and significantly two were four wheel drives and the other a heavy utility. Perhaps the advertising for the popular SUV range is leading owners into danger. The image portrayed is a "go anywhere " vehicle and the pictures shown usually feature "grunt "- and making light work of almost impossible terrain.
What is depressing to police and SES crews is the reckless indifference many drivers display to signs that roads are closed or warning indicators of depth. So many people have a selfish desire to continue their journey despite the obstacles and in many cases this involves someone else risking their own life in a rescue attempt.
Floodwaters can be deceptive. The depth may be within the capability of the vehicle, but if that water is flowing fast it completely alters the picture. Flood crests are an added danger and the only finality that applies to a flood situation is "expect the unexpected " !
This year we have seen an unusual number of cyclones cross the Australian coast and there have been an above average number of storm events delivering heavy rain. It is quite possible that this is geared to global warming and some scientists predict that we will encounter a raised storm cycle in the years ahead. Flooded roads has always been an Australian experience - and it seems that we had better learn to live with it.
The big question is - how do we achieve that end ? The television nightly news shows drivers barging through city streets inundated by sudden rain - and all it takes is one vehicle to stall and block the flow. There will usually be a time gap before barricades can be erected to close country roads and in many cases drivers either remove them or outflank them to continue their journey. It seems that an attitude of defiance prevails wherever it involves floodwater. Drivers insist in making their own evaluation - and taking that final decision.
It seems to be a fact of life that making people obey laws is dependent on extracting a penalty for disobedience. The obvious deterrance would be a refusal of insurance cover whenever a vehicle is deliberately driven through a flood and suffers loss or damage. That would not apply to parked vehicles caught in a flood and would specifically come into force whenever a vehicle was driven past a road closed barrier.
It seems that it may take a financial penalty to reduce what are certainly otherwise preventable deaths !
Sunday, 3 May 2015
Debt Dodgers !
Slowly and surely the need for tertiary qualifications are becoming the requirement for entry into an ever expanding range of professional careers. The old days of "learning on the job " are over and this now applies to nursing and teaching. A university degree also confers higher salaries and is seen as an important step in mapping out a career path.
Not everyone has the ability to pay up front for a university education and so the government introduced a scheme known by the acronym HECS - which was later changed to HELP - to turn those fees into a loan, to be repaid when that persons earnings reached a level sufficient for repayment to begin. The level set for the 2016/17 year is $53,000.
Of course, collecting that debt required the debtor to remain within reach of the Australian tax man and soon many newly minted degree holders headed off overseas and took up rewarding positions in Britain, Europe or the United States - where they were no longer required to lodge an annual Australian tax return. As a consequence, there is now an outstanding HECS debt held by the government that amounts to a staggering thirty-five billion dollars.
The net is about to close. Tax arrangements between countries come into play and those with outstanding HECS debts are about to get a tap on the shoulder from a foreign tax man - and a reminder that the Australian tax office has a very long arm. It seems that dodging that debt by skipping the country is about to end.
There is another anomaly that should get the government's attention. A percentage of university students drop out and do not complete courses, but the debt remains for the time they took a place that could otherwise have been allotted to someone else. Many seem to think that because they did not receive a degree - they need not repay that debt. Because they chose not to complete their course and fled overseas is no reason for debt cancellation. They should firmly remain on the government radar.
There is another matter that draws heavily on the public purse that is about to come under the spotlight. The Sydney median home price is dangerously near a million dollars and both members of the average family need to have a job - and this raises the question of child care costs. This is heavily subsidized and yet finding a place for children to be cared for during the working day is at a premium. The rules are about to change to tilt the balance in favour of those who actually have a job or are studying to achieve the qualifications for work.
At present the rules are lax and those who have a part time job that amounts to only an hour or so's work a week can qualify - and take up a place that prevents someone with a full time job getting child care relief. It raises the question of whether stay-at-home-mums should be eligible for child care rebates as a cost on the public purse.
It seems that some people think that child care is primarily for the the purpose of integrating children socially and developing their interpersonal skills so that they fit neatly into the social order when their schooling years begin. This seems to come into conflict with the desperation of those trying to make a living - and bring up small children at the same time. Working Mums are no longer a matter of choice.
Both collecting HECS debts and tightening the rules on child care will be controversial. There are some people who think university should be free and strenuously try and avoid debt repayments, and others who see childcare as a government responsibility that is simply an early form of the free education system open to all.
It all really comes down to managing the public purse to achieve the most good - for most people - and spread the load in an equitable manner !
Not everyone has the ability to pay up front for a university education and so the government introduced a scheme known by the acronym HECS - which was later changed to HELP - to turn those fees into a loan, to be repaid when that persons earnings reached a level sufficient for repayment to begin. The level set for the 2016/17 year is $53,000.
Of course, collecting that debt required the debtor to remain within reach of the Australian tax man and soon many newly minted degree holders headed off overseas and took up rewarding positions in Britain, Europe or the United States - where they were no longer required to lodge an annual Australian tax return. As a consequence, there is now an outstanding HECS debt held by the government that amounts to a staggering thirty-five billion dollars.
The net is about to close. Tax arrangements between countries come into play and those with outstanding HECS debts are about to get a tap on the shoulder from a foreign tax man - and a reminder that the Australian tax office has a very long arm. It seems that dodging that debt by skipping the country is about to end.
There is another anomaly that should get the government's attention. A percentage of university students drop out and do not complete courses, but the debt remains for the time they took a place that could otherwise have been allotted to someone else. Many seem to think that because they did not receive a degree - they need not repay that debt. Because they chose not to complete their course and fled overseas is no reason for debt cancellation. They should firmly remain on the government radar.
There is another matter that draws heavily on the public purse that is about to come under the spotlight. The Sydney median home price is dangerously near a million dollars and both members of the average family need to have a job - and this raises the question of child care costs. This is heavily subsidized and yet finding a place for children to be cared for during the working day is at a premium. The rules are about to change to tilt the balance in favour of those who actually have a job or are studying to achieve the qualifications for work.
At present the rules are lax and those who have a part time job that amounts to only an hour or so's work a week can qualify - and take up a place that prevents someone with a full time job getting child care relief. It raises the question of whether stay-at-home-mums should be eligible for child care rebates as a cost on the public purse.
It seems that some people think that child care is primarily for the the purpose of integrating children socially and developing their interpersonal skills so that they fit neatly into the social order when their schooling years begin. This seems to come into conflict with the desperation of those trying to make a living - and bring up small children at the same time. Working Mums are no longer a matter of choice.
Both collecting HECS debts and tightening the rules on child care will be controversial. There are some people who think university should be free and strenuously try and avoid debt repayments, and others who see childcare as a government responsibility that is simply an early form of the free education system open to all.
It all really comes down to managing the public purse to achieve the most good - for most people - and spread the load in an equitable manner !
Saturday, 2 May 2015
The Chicken ? Or the Egg ?
Health Minister Sussan Ley and the medical profession are divided on which direction the $20 billion Medical Research Futures Fund should take. AMA President Brian Owler would like to see some of the money applied to new treatments such as Bariatric surgery for the obese which would save lives in the short term rather than all the money applied to futuristic research in pursuit of cures.
Originally, the Futures Fund was to be bankrolled by a co-payment on visits to the doctor but that is now being directed at lowering the Medicare rebate the doctor receives on bulk billed consultations. It is likely that this lost income will be compensated by each medical visit being accompanied by an out of pocket fee paid by patients.
Finding a cure for the wide spectrum of diseases that still ravage the community is a long haul job that costs a mint of money. There is certainly a case to be made for using a portion of the available funds to bring into play existing discoveries that prolong life but are not immediately available to sufferers because of the cost factor. This tends to bring into conflict the scientists who work in research laboratories and the doctors treating people at the medical coal face.
A classical example that exemplifies this divide would be the results obtained from the discovery of a vaccine to prevent cervical cancer in young women. In a few short years of application, the rate of cancerous abnormalities of girls under 20 has halved - and the rate in women in the 20-24 age group has been reduced by 23%.
Discovering this vaccine was a world first and it cost a lot of time and money. Medical research is impossible unless the cost can be recouped by way of patent protection and this is reflected in the cost of the drug involved. The Cervical cancer vaccine was placed on the PBS and became universally available - and there is no doubt that it has saved a lot of lives. What is even more important, with further research it may serve to fully wipe out Cervical cancer and make it a fully preventable disease for future generations.
This vaccine needs to be given to girls before puberty to be most effective and that created a barrier in the early stages. Some parents had the strange idea that a vaccine against what they saw as a sexually transmitted disease would encourage promiscuity - and refused to have their daughters vaccinated. It was necessary to spend funds to overcome this obstacle and hence the costs involved in bringing any new drug successfully to market are wide and varied - but essential if the money spent on development is not to be wasted.
It all boils down to wise heads making the decisions to get the best results from the funds available. Once we have a medical breakthrough in the research laboratories that is only part of the equation. Overcoming obstacles to widespread use and creating the climate for public acceptance can be both complex and daunting. We need to put it all together and therefore the final outcome must be a combination of the use of the research fund to achieve that outcome.
Hopefully, scientists and doctors will not retreat behind the barricades and refuse to see the bigger picture. Twenty billion dollars will buy a lot of medical progress. In many cases, a fairly small lifestyle change can be amazingly effective in prolonging life and in others it takes a "Eureka " moment to change the course of medical history.
The most important thing is to select whatever delivers the best value for the money !
Originally, the Futures Fund was to be bankrolled by a co-payment on visits to the doctor but that is now being directed at lowering the Medicare rebate the doctor receives on bulk billed consultations. It is likely that this lost income will be compensated by each medical visit being accompanied by an out of pocket fee paid by patients.
Finding a cure for the wide spectrum of diseases that still ravage the community is a long haul job that costs a mint of money. There is certainly a case to be made for using a portion of the available funds to bring into play existing discoveries that prolong life but are not immediately available to sufferers because of the cost factor. This tends to bring into conflict the scientists who work in research laboratories and the doctors treating people at the medical coal face.
A classical example that exemplifies this divide would be the results obtained from the discovery of a vaccine to prevent cervical cancer in young women. In a few short years of application, the rate of cancerous abnormalities of girls under 20 has halved - and the rate in women in the 20-24 age group has been reduced by 23%.
Discovering this vaccine was a world first and it cost a lot of time and money. Medical research is impossible unless the cost can be recouped by way of patent protection and this is reflected in the cost of the drug involved. The Cervical cancer vaccine was placed on the PBS and became universally available - and there is no doubt that it has saved a lot of lives. What is even more important, with further research it may serve to fully wipe out Cervical cancer and make it a fully preventable disease for future generations.
This vaccine needs to be given to girls before puberty to be most effective and that created a barrier in the early stages. Some parents had the strange idea that a vaccine against what they saw as a sexually transmitted disease would encourage promiscuity - and refused to have their daughters vaccinated. It was necessary to spend funds to overcome this obstacle and hence the costs involved in bringing any new drug successfully to market are wide and varied - but essential if the money spent on development is not to be wasted.
It all boils down to wise heads making the decisions to get the best results from the funds available. Once we have a medical breakthrough in the research laboratories that is only part of the equation. Overcoming obstacles to widespread use and creating the climate for public acceptance can be both complex and daunting. We need to put it all together and therefore the final outcome must be a combination of the use of the research fund to achieve that outcome.
Hopefully, scientists and doctors will not retreat behind the barricades and refuse to see the bigger picture. Twenty billion dollars will buy a lot of medical progress. In many cases, a fairly small lifestyle change can be amazingly effective in prolonging life and in others it takes a "Eureka " moment to change the course of medical history.
The most important thing is to select whatever delivers the best value for the money !
Friday, 1 May 2015
Death - by Dieting !
It is one of life's mysteries but it seems that if a "celebrity " claims that his or her diet will produce good health and a trim body a vast number of people will slavishly follow that advice - and ask no questions about the qualifications involved.
It seems that this year carbohydrates are the enemy of good health and the Australian Grain and Legumes Nutritional council has discovered that carbohydrate consumption has fallen thirty percent in the past three years. In the majority of cases, our whole grain intake has been replaced by what are termed the "white stuff " - cake and biscuits containing a very unhealthy content of salt and sugar.
It seems that seventy percent of the Australian population are not meeting the Australian dietary guidelines and this is because an overwhelmingly complex number of diets are on offer - and many people adopt a "mix and match " strategy, taking what suits them from several diets and ending up with eating habits that make no dietary sense. The other mistake many people make it to replace the benefits contained in a mix of foods with dietary supplements - from a bottle sold by the health food shops.
The human body is a very complex structure. Just as we need to know what type of fuel to buy when we fill the tank of whatever make of car we drive, food is the fuel for the human engine and we need to cover a wide spectrum of food types to deliver optimum performance. Tinkering with the food intake can be deadly - as evidenced by those who suffer from Anorexia Nervosa.
Perhaps the best way to solve the dieting mystery is to first see a doctor and get tested for any genuine food allergies. This usually involves both a blood test and a series of skin tests that reveal allergies for certain types of nuts or lactose intolerance. Once these are accounted for, the whole wide world of food is available as a human fuel - in moderation !
A century ago the human life span was a lot shorter than it is today. In some countries the average person lives little longer than fifty years and malnutrition is a scourge that stunts the growth of children. Longevity in the western world has increased because food is plentiful - and cheap, and there have been great advances in medical science. Vaccinations have eliminated many diseases that ravaged society and we have a health system with wide public access.
In recent times a lot of people have become both rich and famous from promoting diets - and in many cases the entire thinking behind those diets is what is termed a "fad ". The purpose of the diet is to achieve a single outcome, and in so doing it ignores a whole lot of unintended consequences by restricting essentials not included in that particular dieting regimen.
The average person would probably be better off junking all those diet books and adopting a cuisine that covers all food groups - in moderation. A degree of exercise is necessary to burn off excess calories and common sense - and regular weight checks - will be the best guidelines. A little mental discipline will keep the portions on the dinner plate within reason and make sure we adhere to our exercise schedule.
The only real basic to healthy living by way of healthy eating - is personal discipline. Knowing when to push that plate away and when to go for a daily walk, despite inclement weather. When we take up a diet we summon the resolve to faithfully follow directions - and we lose some weight - but in the vast majority of cases the diet ends - and we immediately pack on the weight lost over a very short period.
This present "fad " is a case in point. Some guru has convinced us to stay clear of carbohydrates and now the human gut is craving the dietary fibre it needs for good health. We will achieve better health by embracing the entire food spectrum - and simply applying a reasonable limit to meal sizes.
The key to good health resides in the decisions we make at meal time - and not in a diet book !
It seems that this year carbohydrates are the enemy of good health and the Australian Grain and Legumes Nutritional council has discovered that carbohydrate consumption has fallen thirty percent in the past three years. In the majority of cases, our whole grain intake has been replaced by what are termed the "white stuff " - cake and biscuits containing a very unhealthy content of salt and sugar.
It seems that seventy percent of the Australian population are not meeting the Australian dietary guidelines and this is because an overwhelmingly complex number of diets are on offer - and many people adopt a "mix and match " strategy, taking what suits them from several diets and ending up with eating habits that make no dietary sense. The other mistake many people make it to replace the benefits contained in a mix of foods with dietary supplements - from a bottle sold by the health food shops.
The human body is a very complex structure. Just as we need to know what type of fuel to buy when we fill the tank of whatever make of car we drive, food is the fuel for the human engine and we need to cover a wide spectrum of food types to deliver optimum performance. Tinkering with the food intake can be deadly - as evidenced by those who suffer from Anorexia Nervosa.
Perhaps the best way to solve the dieting mystery is to first see a doctor and get tested for any genuine food allergies. This usually involves both a blood test and a series of skin tests that reveal allergies for certain types of nuts or lactose intolerance. Once these are accounted for, the whole wide world of food is available as a human fuel - in moderation !
A century ago the human life span was a lot shorter than it is today. In some countries the average person lives little longer than fifty years and malnutrition is a scourge that stunts the growth of children. Longevity in the western world has increased because food is plentiful - and cheap, and there have been great advances in medical science. Vaccinations have eliminated many diseases that ravaged society and we have a health system with wide public access.
In recent times a lot of people have become both rich and famous from promoting diets - and in many cases the entire thinking behind those diets is what is termed a "fad ". The purpose of the diet is to achieve a single outcome, and in so doing it ignores a whole lot of unintended consequences by restricting essentials not included in that particular dieting regimen.
The average person would probably be better off junking all those diet books and adopting a cuisine that covers all food groups - in moderation. A degree of exercise is necessary to burn off excess calories and common sense - and regular weight checks - will be the best guidelines. A little mental discipline will keep the portions on the dinner plate within reason and make sure we adhere to our exercise schedule.
The only real basic to healthy living by way of healthy eating - is personal discipline. Knowing when to push that plate away and when to go for a daily walk, despite inclement weather. When we take up a diet we summon the resolve to faithfully follow directions - and we lose some weight - but in the vast majority of cases the diet ends - and we immediately pack on the weight lost over a very short period.
This present "fad " is a case in point. Some guru has convinced us to stay clear of carbohydrates and now the human gut is craving the dietary fibre it needs for good health. We will achieve better health by embracing the entire food spectrum - and simply applying a reasonable limit to meal sizes.
The key to good health resides in the decisions we make at meal time - and not in a diet book !
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