Developing a funding model for an after-hours primary medical care service in a rural town.
The study described in this paper aimed to determine a funding model for an after-hours primary medical care service in the rural town of Moe, a socioeconomically disadvantaged area of Victoria suffering the rigours of industry restructuring and privatisation. It has 12.5 equivalent full-time general practitioners servicing 21,966 persons. A break-even analysis of the financial viability compared the expected costs of providing the service with the anticipated income. A mixed funding model is recommended. This would incorporate a general practitioner incentive scheme and State Government underwriting of infrastructure and basic non-medical staffing costs during the business development phase to supplement the income from the Health Insurance Commission.
O'Meara
P
P
Monash University Centre for Rural Health, Moe, Victoria.
Hall
R H
RH
Strasser
R
R
Speck
V
V
D003710:Demography; D005260:Female; D005380:Financing, Government; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D017059:Models, Econometric; D010816:Physician Incentive Plans; D011320:Primary Health Care / Q000191:economics*; D019035:Rural Health Services / Q000191:economics*; D014739:Victoria