What is the difference between the health systems in Australia, the UK and the US?

The health system in the UK: the public model for healthcare

The United Kingdom (UK) has universal healthcare.

All residents are automatically entitled to free public healthcare through the National Health Service (NHS). This means all residents can get healthcare based on clinical need not their ability to pay.

Appointments and treatments are typically free.

Certain groups are entitled to free prescription drugs. 

The NHS is funded through taxation.

Approximately 10.5% of the UK’s population has voluntary health insurance so they can get elective surgery more quickly than through the NHS.

The health system in the US: the private model for healthcare

Unlike the United Kingdom and Australia, the United States (US) does not provide a universal healthcare scheme.

The United States (US) government provides healthcare funding for some groups of people only. Its national Medicare program covers adults over 65 and some people with disabilities. It also offers some programs for veterans and people on low incomes.

Healthcare in the US is very expensive. 

Most people in the US have private health insurance because it protects them from having to pay substantial costs if they become ill or are injured. In many cases, employers pay for private health insurance for their employees.

The health system in Australia: the hybrid model for healthcare

The Australian health system is a hybrid system – a mixture of a public and private system.

Like the UK, Australia has a universal health scheme. However, it is not as extensive as that provided by the UK’s National Health Service (NHS).

Australia also has a private health system so Australians can get treatment more quickly and have more choice over the treatment they receive. The government provides incentives, including the Private Health Insurance Rebate and the Age-based Discount, to encourage people to take out private health insurance. It also penalises people for starting Hospital Cover later in life through the Lifetime Health Cover Loading scheme, which adds 2% to your premiums for every year over 31 you are when you take out cover (capped at 70%), and remains in place for 10 years.

If healthcare systems were on a spectrum, the Australian Health System falls somewhere between the US (a largely private system) and the UK (a largely public system).