Tuesday August 30th, 2005. 3:26 pm by frog
Today’s audioblog (mp3, 0.6MB, 4.55mins) is Sue K talking about the Greens’ health policy, which was released today. I talked to her about renaming the Ministry of Health, tackling the root causes of ill health, and helping prevent people from having adverse reactions to the medicines they’re taking.
Posted in Audioblog | Campaign | Health & Wellbeing | by frog | Tue, August 30th, 2005 |
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August 30th, 2005 at 3:52 pm
Oh goody. More tax dollars going on rebranding the Ministry of Sickness to a new improved name. Can’t we have a referendum before you throw out a forest of old letterhead? Ministry of Waiting Lists?
Have you costed and advised how you are going to insulate homes? If they are rental properties, are you going to pay for a rich capitalist to insulate their investment property, or will you simply force them at gun point? (Actually, I like the idea - but I’m still curious, what is the implementationn plan??)
For a free medical check each year, does that mean some-one on a million dollars gets to go to the doctor for free, or will you be raising their tax rates. Will there now be a waiting list for doctors appointments? (I don’t like this idea. Nanny is responsible for our health yet again.)
August 30th, 2005 at 4:13 pm
Sacking most of the health policy analysts will save the funds for rebranding - which can be done gradually as old letterhead runs out, car leases expire, signs replaced, new advertising placed etc.
Better still, sending health policy analysts out in the real world to earn a living will remove inertia from the health management system. This will increase productivity and better use of existing health budgets.
I think the analysts should go work as rest home carers at $10/hour for a few years, return their laptops and mobile phones, use public transport, and eat more fiber for breakfast.
August 30th, 2005 at 6:52 pm
I’ll only answer the free medical check each year, yes it does mean that everyone, even millionaires get it free, but it doesn’t mean that taxes have to go up because by nipping potential health problems in the bud, it means that the health service will save money on later treatment.
August 30th, 2005 at 9:57 pm
I think the whole preventive education is a really good idea. It’s a kind of Chinese way of think
August 31st, 2005 at 10:26 am
After Kedgley’s recent attack on the meningococcal campaign this is another reason not to vote Green. Having her fiddling with public health would be a complete disaster. She should stick to being a lobbyist for the biggest snake oil sellers out there - the health supplement industry.
August 31st, 2005 at 10:32 am
How about legislating that Acupuncturists cannot practice unless their certification is approved by the NZ professional body of acupuncture. And recognising acupuncturists on a par with doctors when it comes to ACC payouts etc, as increasingly people are turning to their acupuncturist rather than a GP for general medical advice and treatment.
This way you give people the choice of treatment between the largely complementary systems. And also putting an end to the nightmare situation we have now where anybody - even a GP with no background of knowledge to understand the science of acupunture and only a few weeks of needling training - can practice acupuncture without restrictions.
August 31st, 2005 at 11:24 am
sock boy have you actually read any of Sue K’s PRs on the meningococcal vaccine - she never once attacks the vaccine or the campaign, she only defends the rights of parents who don’t want their children to be vaccinated.
I’d have thought that such a stance would appeal to all you right-wing personal freedom types, but then again the right-wings stance on cannabis shows that personal freedom and opposition to the “nanny-state” only extends to some things.
August 31st, 2005 at 11:32 am
Yes, I do understand that the anti-vaccination lobby dress their anti-science views up as some sort of parents rights issue.
August 31st, 2005 at 8:31 pm
Stuey: All, that’s EVERY SINGLE ONE, of you left wingers like to make sweeping generalisations.
But to change the topic for just a mo. Not bad about the humpback whales through Cook Strait eh?
August 31st, 2005 at 9:39 pm
I think the whales are happy not being vaccinated against diseases like Brash
September 1st, 2005 at 6:32 am
zenTiger
The most correct way to force them to insulate and maintain would be to force them to pay for heating them to some reasonable temperature. That wouldn’t be easy to control, measure, legislate or do of course, but it would directly put the cost of their inaction in this regard, back on their shoulders.
Of course, given the way they are favoured by the tax system, they’d simply deduct it.
————-
Sock Thief - I don’t know where you get that nonsense about the supplements industry, maybe your spam filter is letting through too much garbage, but there’s more to this than simply calling it snake-oil. There’s some of that of course, but there’s also a lot of stuff that is helpful if you want to stay healthy for a long time. Sue K. may be right off the wall on some of the vaccinations, but the FDA of the US and the big pharma companies are behind most of the anti-supplement rhetoric. THEY want it all to be prescription drugs, patented and expensive. Follow the studies and the money Sock… it isn’t a pretty sight. That fools do not do their homework before buying something, is not unique to the supplement industry.
respectfully
BJ