Hip pocket pain hitting healthcare: report

FEDERAL Health Minister Tanya Plibersek says if you're going to get sick, "Australia is the place to do it", despite a report showing the country ranks the fifth most expensive in the world for out-of-pocket expenses.

The Consumers Health Forum on Monday said Australians pay $1075 every year per person in out of pocket medical costs, compared to $476 for New Zealand and $459 for the UK.

Australians' expenses are $94 above the weighted average for OECD countries, the forum found.

More concerning, it said thousands were applying to the federal Department of Human Services to access their superannuation to pay for health costs.

Forum chief Carol Bennett says Australia's developing a two-tiered health system and needed to overhaul the 30-year-old Medicare system.

"People who have the means can afford to benefit from the best treatment available. People without may not benefit at all," Ms Bennett said.

"What we are seeing in some cases is a triple whammy affect. People pay taxes and pay for private health insurance and then there are still out of pocket expenses."

Ms Plibersek said while Medicare wasn't perfect, it provided a better standard of care and choice than other countries around the world.

"Medicare is a system that most Australians are proud of, and they look around the world and they know that being sick is never good, it's never fun, but if you're going to get sick anywhere, Australia is the place to do it," she said.

While New Zealand paid less for some medicines than Australia, consumers across the Tasman had less choice and in the UK consumers had no choice when it came to their doctor.

"There are restrictions in place there (in Britain) that I don't think Australians would want to see," Ms Plibersek told reporters in Canberra on Monday.

Ms Plibersek said the number of medicines subsided through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme had increased, while Australia was witnessing "historic high bulk billing rates".

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