Tobacco taxes should be increased by 5 per cent a year and products put in plain packaging as part of a strategy to prevent chronic diseases.
The Australian Medical Association's call, outlined its budget submission, argues the Federal Government should spend about $1.4billion a year more on health services. AMA president Dr Rosanna Capolingua said it was one of the best ways to stimulate economy.
''The economic downturn, individual and family financial stress, and increasing unemployment all mean that the Government's commitment to supporting and funding health is even more important. Health care is essential not only for individuals, families and communities but also for a productive workforce,'' she said yesterday.
''Poor health costs the community $7billion in absenteeism alone, while employees coming to work sick and unproductive costs a further $25.7billion a year.''
The AMA said the Government should tax alcohol based on volume and ban manufactures from sponsoring sporting events and marketing their products to adolescents; and it should ban junk food ads aimed at children.
''Managing the escalation of chronic diseases requires a concerted effort at prevention and early intervention around the major modifiable risk factors such as tobacco use, alcohol consumption, diet and physical activity,'' the submission says. ''It is important that preventative health is also tackled through regulatory measures and by taking greater advantage of the doctors' existing role in prevention and early intervention strategies with their patients.''
It said the Government should provide $440million annually to improve basic health care for indigenous people to close the 17-year gap in life expectancy. Medicare rebates should be indexed to reflect the actual cost of delivering medical care a change that would cost $350million a year.
About $100million annually should be spent on new rebates for medical services provided in nursing homes and $67million a year to ensure the appropriate care and supervision of residents.
The doctors' group urged about $50million a year should be used to recruit more general practice nurses and expand rebates so they could provide a broader range of services such as management of obesity and diabetes.
More training places for interns, $32million a year to train more GPs, $385million a year to attract GPs to the bush and $36million a year to compensate patients forced to travel for treatment were also on the wish list. The Government should aim to open 3750 extra public hospital beds and boost funding for health and medical research to $1.4billion a year by 2014-15, the AMA said.