HIS LAB PRELIM NOTES ON HEALTH SYSTEMS

FRANCE

1. Primary healthcare is provided by GPs (médecins généraliste) or general practitioners.

They refer patients to specialists and/or hospitals and act as ‘gatekeepers,’ meaning
they are the ones first seen by patients. They are also responsible for following diseases
on a routine basis, that is, between acute phases which require specialist intervention.
2. About 60 percent of French hospital capacity exists as publicly-owned hospitals. The rest
are classified as private, for-profit hospitals, and non-profit organizations.
3. France follows a statutory health financing program that covers up to 70%-100% of
health spending. If any medical bill balance is left, it is covered by private health
insurance or direct out-of-pocket spending by patients.
4. The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health (Ministere des Solidarites et de la Sante) is the
government agency that administers public healthcare in France, with primary and
secondary care services delivered by other healthcare providers. France promotes
preventative healthcare, with available services including addiction prevention, regular
medical check-ups, and the promotion of physical activity and healthy eating.
5. If a person intends to avail of French healthcare services, he/she is required to submit
the following documents:
a. Your passport or valid ID
b. Proof of French residence
c. Proof of address, such as a recent French utility bill
d. Marriage or birth certificates, if including family members
e. Evidence of income, if applying for CMU-C (a type of insurance coverage)
6. Contraception is readily available in France. You need a prescription from a doctor,
gynecologist, or midwife to get a birth control pill, while you can buy condoms in
pharmacies and supermarkets.
7. France has a detailed vaccination schedule for children aged 0 to 13. For children born
after 1 January 2018, vaccinations are mandatory for:
a. Diphtheria
b. Tetanus
c. Polio
d. Whooping cough or pertussis
e. Hemophilus influenzae B
f. Hepatitis B
g. Meningococcus C
h. Pneumococcus
i. Measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR)
8. Children in France undergo routine screening for issuing Child Health Certificates. These
occur three times in a child’s life: within eight days of birth, after nine months, and after
24 months.
 9. Medical Psychological Centers provide the majority of mental healthcare in France.
Practitioners such as psychiatrists, psychologists, nurses, social workers, occupational
therapists, and speech therapists run these centers.
10. Family Planning Centers are integral to public health provision in France. They provide
services such as birth control, parenting sessions, sexual health advice, and abortions
11. Dentists in France work within the public healthcare system, and much of the cost is
reimbursed. Dental charges for most adults are reimbursed at 70%, while children’s
checkups are reimbursed at 100%. However, special dental procedures like orthodontics
are not covered, so the patient is expected to pay for these.
12. French healthcare reimburses around 80% of hospital charges. However, a hospital
stay's board and lodging costs are not, so patients are expected to have their private
health insurance or out-of-pocket money to pay for this.
13. The rising cases of monkeypox in France compelled the national government to
introduce smallpox vaccinations to promote immunity in the general population.

DENMARK

1. For practical purposes, the health care service can be divided into two sectors: Primary
health care and the hospital sector.
2. The primary health care sector deals with general health problems, and its services are
available to all. This sector can be divided into two parts: One chiefly deals with the
treatment and care: of general practitioners, practicing specialists, practicing dentists,
physiotherapists, etc. (the practice sector), and district nursing. The other part is
predominantly preventive and deals with preventive health schemes, health care, and
child dental care.
3. When contracting an illness, the citizen usually first comes into contact with primary
health care.
4. The hospital sector deals with medical conditions which require more specialized
treatment, equipment, and intensive care.
5. In addition to treating patients, general practitioners and hospitals are involved in
preventive treatment, training health personnel, and medical research.
6. In the health care service, the general practitioners act as "gatekeepers" with regard to
hospital treatment and treatment by specialists. This means that patients usually start by
consulting their general practitioners, whose job is to ensure that they are offered the
treatment they need and that they will not be treated on a more specialized level than
necessary.
7. The Danish health system is largely tax-funded by decentralized organizations. The
national government leads on regulation, supervision, some planning, and quality
monitoring, while the five regions are responsible for defining and planning the delivery
of health services. The municipalities are responsible for health promotion, disease
prevention, rehabilitation, home care, and long-term care.
8. The Regions govern primary and secondary health care services provided by GPs,
hospitals, and specialists in private practice. The Regions also administer the drug
 reimbursement plan based on data electronically collected by community pharmacies
when prescriptions are dispensed.
9. All Danish residents are automatically covered by the national health system. Financing
comes predominantly from state-level general tax revenues and, to a lesser extent, a
municipal income tax. The central government allocates block grants to regions and
municipalities based on demographics and activity levels. The public share of health
spending was 83 % in 2019.
10. The highest share of health spending is on outpatient care, followed by inpatient and
long-term care.
11. Regional authorities are responsible for organizing and delivering health care services in
Denmark. People are generally required to register with a GP, who provides primary care
and plays a gatekeeping role for access to hospital and most specialist care.
12. Danes can choose from two public insurance options. Practically all Danes (98%)
choose Group 1 coverage, under which general practitioners (GPs) act as gatekeepers
and patients need a referral to see specialists, except for a few specialties. The
remaining 2 percent of Danes choose Group 2 coverage, which allows access to
specialists without a referral, although copayments apply. Under both insurance options,
access to hospitals requires a referral.
13. Persons covered in Group 1 must register with a specific general practitioner, and
persons in Group 2 have the right, but not the duty, to register with a specific general
practitioner of their choice. Children under the age of 15 generally register with the same
general practitioner as their parents. Persons covered in Group 1 have the right to free
medical help from their general practitioner or his substitute. They may also, free of
charge, visit another general practitioner when they are temporarily staying outside their
own general practitioner's area in case of sudden illness, aggravated illness, accidents,
etc. Persons insured under Group 2 have to pay part of the cost of medical help from a
general practitioner. The subsidy they receive corresponds to the cost of similar medical
help from a general practitioner for persons in Group 1.
14. All residents contribute to financing the health care system through federal and local
taxation and may not opt-out, though certain expenses are deductible. Tax revenue
finances 84% of the total health care expenditure (approximately 8.9% of the gross
domestic product). Out-of-pocket copayments are moderate compared with other
European countries, amounting to 16% of health care expenditures (1.7% of the gross
domestic product), mainly through contributions to the costs of medications (detailed
below under "Medicines"), prescribed physiotherapy (60% copayment), glasses (for
children <16 years and senior citizens), and dental care.
15. COVID-19 delayed non-essential care, but the health system remained responsive to
changing needs.
16. Cancer care was a priority, but COVID-19 impacted screening and treatment referrals.
17. Teleconsultations were scaled up rapidly during the first wave of the pandemic. Video
consultations with GPs and some specialists were made possible through the national
“Min Læge” (My Doctor) mobile application. To incentivize provision, reimbursement fees
for physicians were increased. The Health Ministry funded all information
technology-related costs.
18. During the spring of 2020, Denmark used several approaches to boost its health
workforce capacity. Regional health authorities (responsible for organizing hospital
services) established reserve lists where retired health professionals and medical and
nursing students could sign up to provide services if needed in the event of a surge. This
necessitated fast-track retraining in some cases, particularly for roles in ICU and
ventilator facilities.
19. Mask-wearing was uncommon but increased in line with policy mandates during the
second wave. As in other Nordic countries, Denmark did not mandate the use of face
masks at first, although it was recommended in certain situations. As a result, Denmark
had among the lowest rates of mask-wearing outside the home among European
countries until August 2020, when masks became mandatory on public transportation. In
October 2020, when face masks were mandated in all public indoor spaces, their use
quickly increased, with more than 60 % of the population reporting that they wore a mask
outside their home.
20. In March 2020, the Health Ministry mandated private companies, regions, and
municipalities to inform the Danish Medicines Agency about their stocks of
pharmaceuticals and medical equipment to allow them to be redistributed to parts of the
health system with the greatest need. The Agency also launched the “Denmark helps
Denmark” campaign, an online platform allowing private firms to donate their PPE and
disinfectant supplies to front-line health personnel. In August 2020, the government
launched a new agency tasked with ensuring the supply of testing capacity and PPE.
21. A mobile application, “Smitte|Stop” (Infection|Stop), was launched in June 2020 to assist
with contact tracing based on anonymized Bluetooth technology.
22. The government set up a call center in May 2020 to assist individuals with tracing and
isolation. In June, a contact tracing unit was established under the National Patient
Safety Agency, tasked with contacting all individuals testing positive and offering them
advice about tracing their contacts.
23. Vaccinations are free and voluntary and are administered as part of the national vaccine
program. The National Serum Institute is responsible for purchasing and distributing
vaccines to regions based on population size. Regions organize delivery; administration
occurs at vaccination stations, nursing homes, and hospitals, and at home for some
vulnerable groups.
24. In May 2021, the government launched the “Corona pass” mobile app that uses data
from COVID-19 tests, vaccinations, and recovery from disease to grant access to
events, restaurants, and domestic travel.
25. Denmark, home to the only company with an approved monkeypox vaccine on the
market, will start offering the shot to its citizens more broadly as the virus spreads.
26. The vaccine will be offered to all men who have sex with men, the group most vulnerable
to the transmission of the disease, the Danish Health Authority said in a statement on
Tuesday. Until now, the shot has only been offered to people who have been in close
contact with a person that's infected.
27. Denmark is using Imvanex, the smallpox vaccine which last month was approved by
European health authorities for monkeypox. It's produced by Bavarian Nordic A/S, a
 Danish company that in recent months has announced a slew of vaccine orders from
governments in Europe and North America.

TAIWAN:

1. Taiwan's national health insurance (NHI) system is an example of universal healthcare.

2. The nationalized healthcare system in Taiwan is extremely beneficial because healthcare
administration costs are low. As a result, the country spends only about 6% of its GDP
on healthcare yearly.
3. Prior to the pandemic, their healthcare services were provided through a single-payer
system. Taiwan began implementing this universal healthcare system in 1995, following
the advice of then-adviser Uwe Reinhardt. This universal medical care system aims to
provide high-quality, easily accessible medical care to 99% of Taiwan's population and
all noncitizens with resident permits issued by the National Immigration Agency of
Taiwan.
4. One of the critical roles of regional hospitals in Taiwan's NHI-developed healthcare
system is disease monitoring and preventative measures. Access to routine clinical care
will be limited as the pandemic continues, affecting both short- and long-term outcomes.
5. Close collaboration between Taiwan's hospitals and the central government has yielded
significant benefits. Every citizen and resident of the country is given a health card,
which contains a computer chip with information about their identity and medical history.
6. This has enabled hospitals to quickly and efficiently control visitor entry, report on patient
symptoms, and share information among the island's major medical centers in Taipei,
Kaohsiung, Taichung, and other cities.
7. According to Djordjevic, National Health Insurance (NHI) in Taiwan offers universal,
required coverage.
8. Benefits under the NHI are uniform and comprehensive. Benefits that are covered
include: Outpatient and inpatient treatment (both primary and specialty care),
Prescription medications, Dental treatment (excluding orthodontics and prosthodontics),
Traditional Chinese medicine, Renal dialysis, Prenatal care, Childbirth, Physical
rehabilitation, Home care, Long-term mental health treatment, Preventive care includes
cancer screenings, newborn and child, examinations, and vaccination for children up to
age 6.
9. NHI: Covers 99.9% population through a single-payer system. It covers a wide variety of
benefits.
10. NHI Smart Card (2004)- enables real-time access for all providers to upload patient
records and claims. The characteristics of NHI Smart Cards are coverage,
administration, financing, benefits, providers, payments, and privileges.
11. The second-generation phase (2013)- focuses on applying the internet, cloud, and other
information technologies to the system to optimize use and efficiency.
12. System for Integrated Delivery- About 400,000 Taiwanese, or 1.7% of the population,
reside in isolated, mountainous, and offshore islands; they have access to medical care
through the Integrated Delivery System, a government initiative that started in 1999.
13. The Integrated Care Program for Family Doctors.- The NHIA has promoted this
community-based program since 2003. Community networks offer patient-centered
primary care, including illness management, patient health education, and preventative
care.
14. MediCloud System (2018)- made by Central Epidemic Command, Center→provides
providers and patients real-time access to patients' health records, including
diagnostic imaging and prescriptions.

Function: With real-time access to patients' travel, employment, contact, and

clustering histories, healthcare professionals may efficiently triage patients and
make prompt, accurate diagnoses while ensuring their safety.

15. My Health Bank (2014)- Citizens can easily apply for My Health Bank online using
their Citizen Digital Certificate or registered NHI Card. They can immediately
search for or download their medical records after having their identity confirmed.
16. Using AI-assisted Technology to respond to The COVID-19 Pandemic- A framework for
AI-based pneumonia decision-making will assist physicians in quickly interpreting CXR
pictures. To lessen the danger of exposure for medical workers.
17. HEALTH FINANCING→ National Health Insurance (NHI) system (2004), MediCloud
system (2018), Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) assessment (2018 onwards), The launch of
the National Health Insurance showed how competent Taiwan is in terms of
healthcare service (Abdul, 2015).
18. Taiwan is one of the few countries that has managed to maintain a normal state in
their country despite the pandemic.And that is by increasing vaccine and drug
development, increasing medical capacity and resources, improving border inspection
and quarantine measures to facilitate resuming borders for business and travel so that
every country can be as safe as Taiwan.
19. On June 24, 2022, the first case of monkeypox was detected. Similar to Taiwan's
response to the COVID-19 pandemic, vaccinations, and antiviral drugs are needed for
future monkeypox outbreaks in the country. Several measures, including the potential
use of the smallpox vaccine for post-exposure prophylaxis of close contacts, the
development of rapid diagnostic assays with high sensitivity and specificity, and the
implementation of an active surveillance and monitoring system, are required to
prevent the spread of the monkeypox outbreak.
20. Individuals were required to use their NHI cards to purchase masks under the
Name-based Mask Distribution System, thereby preventing an imbalance in supply and
demand and ensuring that all residents would have fair access to medical masks as
demand increased.
21. In order to efficiently integrate health data, a new feature for accessing patients' travel
and contact histories was added to the NHI MediCloud System.
22. The arrival of passengers from Wuhan was halted last January 2020
23. In March 2020, Taiwan was permitted to exclude non-residents from entering its territory.
24. Individuals testing positive were confined to the hospital.
25. Taiwan had the longest virus-free run globally in 2020, going eight months without a
single domestic covid transmission. (Wei, 2022)
 26. The zero-COVID policy has seriously restricted the regular way of life Taiwan's borders
cannot be permanently closed since the nation relies on overseas trade and relations
with other nations.
27. Taiwan has developed the "new Taiwanese model," which acknowledges that Omicron
cannot be stopped from spreading but that efforts can be made to stabilize the curve.
28. (Guardian News and Media, 2022).
29. The first case of Monkeypox in Taiwan is a 20-year-old male who recently arrived from
Germany.
30. The first incident of monkeypox virus infection occurred on June 24, 2022
31. Taiwan is actively negotiating to purchase smallpox vaccinations
32. According to prior research, 85% effective against monkeypox, antiviral drugs may be
used to treat affected people. Vaccinations give crossover protection against
Monkeypox.
33. Antiviral medications possible to treat monkeypox—504 courses of tecovirimat—were
subject to delivery to Taiwan, as the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) mentioned.
Focus Taiwan (2022) Public advisory was placed with utter importance.
34. Necessary countermeasures in dealing with the possibility of virus contact: Mode of
transmission, Prevention
35. Citizens with signs of illness ought to get assistance as soon as possible.
36. Additionally, let the doctor know about their history of travel and contacts.
37. As symptoms persist for 14-21 days following the worldwide practice, patients in Taiwan
are supposed to stay in isolation until after lesions have crusted, scabs have come off,
and a new skin layer has developed below.

SOUTH KOREA

A. Healthcare System of South Korea prior to the pandemic

1. South Korea achieved universal health insurance within the span of 12 years. This
remarkable achievement humbly started in 1977 when they shifted from private voluntary
health insurance to government-mandated universal coverage until the National Health
Insurance (NHI) was extended to the whole nation in 1989. Korea achieved universal health
coverage for the entire population in 1989, and integrated into a single-payer system in 2000.

2. The health care system comprises three branches: the National Health Insurance Program
(NHIP), Medical Aid Program, and the Long-term Care Insurance (LTCI) Program. The NHIP
supervises operations and makes policy decisions; the National Health Insurance Corporation
manages health insurance enrollment collects contributions and sets medical fee schedules;
the Health Insurance Review Agency reviews fees and evaluates care; and the medical care
institutions that provide health care. The Medical Aid Program covers the low-income
household, children below 18 years old, and those who have incurable and chronic diseases
who are unable to pay for their own health coverage, while LTCI covers old people with
difficulties in physical activities and to ease the burden on their families. The NHI system
 adopted advanced information and communications technology (ICT) in its early stages to
ensure transparency and accountability.

3. The Seoul Metropolitan Government, a local government in South Korea, deployed advanced
technological tools and services to ensure easy access to quality healthcare and promote its
citizens' safety and well-being. In 2010, SMG was rated as the top global city in
e-government efforts worldwide.

4. Despite the country’s success as one of the world’s fastest information and communication
technology infrastructures, it also has an infrastructure that is vulnerable to cyberattacks. In
2019, Due to the frequency and gravity of cyberattacks, the Korean government announced
its first National Cybersecurity Strategy, which includes strengthening partnerships with
foreign countries and companies and expanding investment in the domestic cybersecurity
industry. In 2022, to accelerate the promotion of its cybersecurity industry, they established the
“Strategic Plan to Foster Data Protection Industry”.

B. Healthcare System of South Korea during the pandemic

1. South Korea had the second highest number of covid-19 cases, following China during the
first two months of the Covid-19 pandemic. Despite this high onset of cases, South Korea
could dramatically lower its incidence of new cases and sustain a low mortality rate.

2. The following are the key elements of South Korea’s pandemic preparedness and response
strategies, making them a promising example of a strong national response to Covid-19
pandemic: (1) Early recognition of the threat and rapid activation of the national response
protocols led by national leadership, (2) Rapid establishment of widespread diagnostic
capacity, (3) Scale-up of measures for preventing community transmission, including contact
tracing, quarantine, and isolation, and (4) Redesigning the triage and treatment systems and
mobilizing the necessary resources for case management.

3. Early recognition of the threat and rapid activation of national response protocols led by
National leadership: The first case of Covid-19 in South Korea was on January 20, 2020, until
February 18, 2020, there were only 31 new cases.

4. On February 23, 2020, the Korean government assembled the Central Disaster and
Safety Countermeasure Headquarters headed by the Prime Minister after the country
declared a Crisis Alert to the highest level of 4 to ensure a cross-society and
pan-governmental approach to containing the pandemic, including careful contact tracing,
meticulous case investigation and effective surveillance with rapid feedback of results.

5. The Central Disease Control Headquarters (KCDC, Korea Centers for Disease Control &
Prevention) serves as the command center of the prevention and control efforts.
6. The Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) established the testing-tracing-treatment (3T)
strategy in public health, in collaboration with Korea Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (KCDC), currently renamed as Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency
(KDCA) for the rapid development of novel diagnostic tests using real-time polymerase chain
reaction (PCR) technology.

7. Scale-up of measures for preventing community transmission, including contact tracing,

quarantine, and isolation; South Korea rapidly deployed an additional workforce for their
contract tracing program. The central, provincial, and metropolitan governments officers who
were responsible for contact tracing in large clusters and public health centers, this contact
tracing was also accomplished by a rapidly established temporary workforce of
Epidemiological Intelligence Service (EIS) officers who were repurposed from governmental
health center officers across approximately 250 districts.

8. To prevent disease spread, individuals who were identified as having contact with either
confirmed or suspected cases were quarantined at home or in designated support centers for
two weeks or until they were confirmed to be clear of infection.

9. They activated one triage center per district for any individuals with a fever or respiratory
symptoms.

10. The government discouraged all nonessential gatherings from achieving social distancing
for the broader population but was not strictly mandated.

11. They implemented a strict program of self-quarantine and contact tracing for all incoming
travelers.

12. Redesigning the triage and treatment systems and mobilizing the necessary resources for
case management: In response to the pandemic, South Korea redesigned their health
service provision at the national level. These changes initially focused on the subnational
epicenter to create two systems; to both manage Covid-19 and ensure continuity of
non-COVID related needs.

13. The COVID-19 system included public quarantine, primary health care triage, and admission
for observation at the primary care level and transfer to secondary hospitals and tertiary
hospitals based on the severity of illness.

14. The restructuring also included diverting the flow of patients with non-COVID-19 conditions
through triage centers at the district or hospital level (designated as “system safety
guaranteed hospitals” by the government). To establish this proper treatment capacity for
the expected surge of COVID-19 cases, six measures were undertaken, including:

15. Designated triage centers were established at the district level to assess any individuals with
a fever or respiratory symptoms.
16. The Ministry of Health and Welfare designated a group of university hospitals and
university-affiliated hospitals as critical care hospitals for critically ill COVID-19 patients,
which are equipped with negative pressure intensive care units, ventilators, and
extracorporeal membrane oxygenation availability.

17. A number of general hospitals with negative pressure units as well as respiratory medicine
and infectious disease subspecialists were designated for severe but not critically ill patients
with COVID-19.

18. For mild to moderate cases, non-hospital beds of diverse dormitories were transformed into
new clinical facilities (16 total).

19. A referral system was also established through the National Medical Center to coordinate
referrals from lower-level facilities to higher-level facilities. This referral system included
moving beyond the boundaries of metropolitan cities or provincial territories through
national-level coordination.

20. Prioritizing resources for treatment focused on beds, oxygen, RT-PCR testing, computed
tomography scans, as well as PPE for health workers and medical personnel.

AUSTRALIA:

1. Australia offers health promotion, protection, and disease prevention programs. This
includes vaccination and immunization, healthy lifestyle initiatives, and cancer screening.
Australia prioritizes the health of health care providers and patients through telehealth
services, electronic prescribing, and home delivery of medications.
2. The system has two major parts: the public health system and the private health system.
The public health system comprises several components, including public hospitals,
community-based services, and affiliated health organizations. Australians could access
their services for free or at a lower cost through MEDICARE.
3. MEDICARE is a universal health insurance scheme where it pays for medical services and
procedures provided by private practitioners (general practitioners and other medical
practitioners) in the community. Medicare ensures Australians have access to free hospital
services for public patients in public hospitals and free to low-cost pharmaceutical products.
4. In the Private system, health service providers are owned and managed privately, such as
private hospitals, specialist medical and allied health, and pharmacies.
5. The providers that include Australia's health care are general practitioners, medical
specialists, allied health workers, and nurses. Doctors, particularly general practitioners
(GPs), are the starting point in health care. They will assess and try to treat immediate
health concerns. They are the ones who will refer the patient to a specialist, hospital, or
alternate care. GPs are included in the allied health professionals. These are trained
professionals who help manage physical and mental health, like physiotherapists and
psychologists.
6. The health service of the country was divided into two, Primary health care and Specialist
health care. Primary health care services include general practice, allied health, dispensing
medicines, and community health. Specialist care provides services for those with specific or
complex conditions or issues. This includes mental health services, cancer treatment,
alcohol, and other drug treatment services, clinical assessment for surgery, and palliative
care. Palliative care is specialized medical care for people living with serious illnesses. This
aims to prevent and relieve suffering and improve the quality of life of people facing
problems associated with a life-limiting illness.
7. For Australia to become a great steward, the country needs the combined efforts of different
governmental levels. Australia's health care system is jointly run by all levels of the
Australian government – federal, state, territory, and local. They distributed their
responsibilities to give the best health care. Below are the specific responsibilities of each
sector.

The Australian Government:

● develops national health policy

● funds medical services through Medicare and medicines through the Pharmaceutical
Benefits Scheme (PBS)
● provides funds to states and territories for public hospital services
● funds population-specific services, including community-controlled Aboriginal and Torres
Strait Islander primary health care, health services for veterans, and residential aged
care
● funds health and medical research
● regulates medicines and medical devices
● supports access to and regulates private health insurance.

State and territory governments:

● fund and manage public hospitals

● regulate and license private hospitals and other health premises, and regulate products
with health impacts such as alcohol and tobacco
● deliver community-based and preventive services (for example, cancer screening and
immunization), ambulance services, and services to address complaints against any of
these.

Local governments in some jurisdictions can be involved in:

● delivery of community and home-based health and support services

● environmental health services (for example, waste disposal, water fluoridation)
● public health activities.
8. They have created an information database to deliver quality healthcare and guarantee a
standardized and unified response across the country. The Australian Health Protection
Principal Committee (AHPPC) is the key decision-making committee for health
emergencies. It is composed of all state and territory chief health officers and is chaired by
 the Australian chief medical officer. The AHPPC ensures coordination between state and
territory governments with the federal government through data sharing and advice, creating
evidence-based policies, and delivering consistent and integrated responses.
9. The Australian federal government finances and indirectly supports patients through the
Medicare Benefits Scheme (a listing of the Medicare services subsidized by the Australian
Government) and Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (designed to provide safe, affordable
medicines to all Australians).
10. Medicare – is a universal health insurance scheme that underpins Australia's health system.
Medicare pays rebates for medical services and procedures provided by private practitioners
(general practitioners and other medical practitioners) in the community, and Medicare
ensures Australians have access to free hospital services for public patients in public
hospitals and a range of prescription pharmaceuticals subsidized (Biggs 2016). Medicare is
funded by the Australian Government through taxation revenue, including a Medicare Levy
and a Medicare Levy Surcharge (ATO 2021). Medicare is currently available to Australian
and New Zealand citizens, permanent residents in Australia, and people from countries with
reciprocal agreements (Department of Health 2019).
11. Most people outside these categories must pay full fees for health services or take out
private health insurance (Private Health Insurance Ombudsman 2019). The country also
offers private health insurance because some medical and allied health services are not
subsidized through Medicare. Ambulance services, dental services, and optical aids are not
covered by Medicare.
12. To respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, The country introduced telehealth services to the
Medicare Benefits Schedule. The three categories of their approach to patients are
face-to-face, video conference, and telephone.
13. One factor that helped Australia fight the pandemic is the National Medical Stockpile. The
National Medical Stockpile reserves medical supplies for future use in case of a public
health emergency. Drugs, vaccines, antidotes, and PPEs are purchased and kept in large
amounts, making Australia self-sufficient and enabling them to meet high demands. This
ensures the accessibility of pharmaceuticals and PPEs to protect healthcare professionals
and patients. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, the health system of Australia prioritized
cardiovascular health, cancer control, injury prevention, mental health, Diabetes Mellitus,
and more but during the pandemic, health priorities shifted to Covid-19. During the
pandemic, there was a risk of medicine shortage, even though they had stocked a large
amount because of the importation of medicines.
14. During the vaccine rollout for covid-19, they ensured the accessibility of vaccines to all
Australians 12 years and older. The vaccines are free for everyone in Australia. They also
have Operation COVID Shield, where the National COVID vaccine taskforce of Australia
coordinates the distribution and delivery of the rollout.
15. They also provide oral treatments to ensure the treatment of covid-19. The first oral
treatments were Lagevrio and Paxlovid and were approved on January 18, 2022, by the
Therapeutic Goods Administration. The advantage of Oral treatments for Covid-19 is that
the patients don't need to travel to hospitals because the treatment is available in their
homes.
16. The first case of monkeypox in Australia was from an overseas traveler. As the cases grew,
the federal government secured vaccines for the rollout. One of the preventive measures
conducted by Australia was ring vaccination, where vaccines are given to those who are in
close contact with the person exposed to the virus.

UNITED KINGDOM

Health Benefits
● Home Nursing Care for Terminally-Ill patients
● Disability Living Allowance and Attendance
● Allowance for those with Special needs
● Free ambulance rides and Hospital visits for those in need of assistance in Medical
needs
● Non-European Travelers are also entitled to receive free Emergency department
treatment

Health Service Inputs

● Equipment and Facilities

○ Number of Beds
■ 229 acute hospital beds per 100,000 people in 2013
■ one of the lowest in the EU (well below the EU average of 356 per
100,000)
○ MRI and CT machines
■ The number of MRI units in the UK as a whole went from 4.5 per million
people in 2003 to 6.8 in 2012
■ The number of CT scanners has gone up from 6.9 per 1 million people in
2003 to 8.7 per 1 million people in 2012
● Workforce
○ 870 nurses per 100,000 people in the UK (more than the EU average of 850)
○ 278 doctors per 100,000 people in the UK (below the EU average of 347 per
100,000 people)

Stewardship

The National Health Service (NHS) was founded in 1946 and is responsible for the public
healthcare sector of the UK. Before this, healthcare in the UK was generally available only to
the wealthy unless one was able to obtain free treatment through charity or teaching hospitals.

System Oversight on Health Care

Problem Identification
Key priorities of UK Health Care:
• Reducing health inequalities
• Obesity, healthy weight, and nutrition
• Mental health
 • Tackling health harms
• Sexual and reproductive health
• Early years
• Public health reforms
Regulations
National Health Service Act of 2006
• an act that regulates and optimizes health care for all citizens of the United
Kingdom.
Health act of 2009
• The UK government is also responsible for the health of its citizens, thus
providing Health Consultations.
Activity Coordination
The National Healthcare System of the UK is world widely known to be the
largest Healthcare provider. The organization manages activities that could
best provide benefits to the Health of UK citizens.
Implications
• Provide free health care service
• Financial aids for health service
• Optimal Hospital Services

Data Collection
National Strategy Data is a method used by the United Kingdom since the start of
the pandemic. Due to the ongoing increase of cases through this method, it became a
rapid pathway for data collection and distribution to the whole country.

Monkeypox Update

● As of August 22, 2022, there are 3,340 cases of Monkey Pox, and most of the victims
were from England also; these cases were among gay or bisexual men.
● The first case of Monkeypox in the United Kingdom was officially confirmed on May 7,
2022, but had the rash symptoms since April 2022, when the victim was isolated for
further tests.