Carbon tax payments roll as Labor promises a non-event

Mark Metherell MORE than 315,000 students will start receiving up to $190 this week in the latest handout from the federal government to defray the carbon tax, which starts next month.

Big names missing from Gillard's economy talkfest

Mark Metherell THE Prime Minister's summit this week to tackle Australia's patchwork economy has itself drawn a patchwork response.

Concerns for services as hospitals wait for new funds

Mark Metherell AUSTRALIA'S public hospitals are about to learn whether new federal funding arrangements will give them scope to treat more patients or will increase pressure to cut services.

Publicity truck hits the road, but AMA warns ehealth launch will drive into bugs

Mark Metherell THE government's ehealth agency has deployed a truck to tour Australia promoting electronic health records.

Audit rethink lets 600 dentists off the hook

Mark Metherell MORE than 600 dentists under audit for suspected Medicare payment irregularities will have their cases reviewed after the government admitted the compliance scheme was ''fundamentally flawed''.

Thomson 'misled Parliament'

Mark Metherell Embattled Labor MP has been accused of repeatedly misleading the Parliament last week.

Thomson made multiple false claims to Parliament, says Abetz

Mark Metherell THE embattled MP Craig Thomson repeatedly misled Parliament when he challenged the damning Fair Work Australia report during his hour long speech last week, Opposition Senate leader, Eric Abetz, said...

Boss defends ABC over bias claims

Mark Metherell Opposition accusations that the ABC was soft on global warming activist Tim Flannery draw a heated denial from the broadcaster's managing director.

Alcohol warning labels shunned by industry despite research

Mark Metherell THE alcohol industry is putting ''booze before babies'' by making false and misleading claims to a parliamentary inquiry into fetal alcohol disorders, a publicly-funded research body says.

Two-thirds opposed to easing of drug laws

Mark Metherell, Lisa Davies AUSTRALIANS remain firmly against relaxing illicit drug laws despite declarations by a group of eminent Australians and a global commission that the war on drugs has failed.

Patients forced into repeat surgery over faulty hip implants

Mark Metherell MORE than 1000 patients have had to undergo repeat hip implant surgery as new figures show a dramatic rise in the failure rate of once-popular implants.

Rural health loses $120m because of bed squabble

Mark Metherell MORE than $120 million meant for often-struggling country health services has been dropped from the federal budget because of a squabble over a requirement to provide beds.

Medicare review stirs debate on circumcision

Mark Metherell THE LONG-RUNNING debate on circumcision is set to return as the federal government considers whether the surgical practice should continue to qualify for Medicare payments.

Medicare cap 'increased out-of-pocket expenses'

Mark Metherell THE federal budget could include measures aimed at plugging cost blowouts in the Medicare safety net - a move that risks further shifting the cost burden from the taxpayer back to the patient.

Conflicting legal advice calls for rethink in handling dentists' Medicare breaches

Mark Metherell OFFICIAL demands on 65 dentists to repay more than $21 million for Medicare breaches have turned into a bureaucratic quagmire, with the federal government revealing it has received contradictory...

Public dental services in a 'horrifying' state

Mark Metherell A WEEK before the budget, the government faces more pressure to expand public dental services and the fallout from an unprecedented outcry from dentists over their treatment by Medicare.

Aged care reforms under fire

Mark Metherell The prospect of elderly people getting the right aged care at the right price under the Gillard government's aged care reforms has been challenged in a new industry report.

Health ministers warn of 'unsustainable' services

Mark Metherell Australia's dependence on imported doctors and nurses will continue to grow without reforms in supply and use of local graduates, report says.

Call for rethink on aged care reforms

Mark Metherell THE prospect of elderly people having to pay steeply increased co-payments for care services at home is fuelling calls for the government to rethink the financing of its aged care reforms.

Elderly to be billed thousands for home care

Mark Metherell Many elderly Australians will face thousands of dollars a year in additional expenses to receive care at home under the Gillard government's aged care reforms.

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