Flying Doctor Service under threat

Don't worry, Mike: it's privatisation and competition, that has worked so well in the US Health scenario: only 46 million Americans can't get medical services, all the rest are OK!
So just wait: In five years time, over 90% of Australians will have access to the Son of RFDS, leaving only 2 million out of reach, in 80% of Australia's inland.
But it will be EFFICIENT!!
Am I cynical?

Here is the link to the article Rivals undercut RFDS

Cheers Kev

How many times does it happen??
Some new player comes in and just to get a foot in the door undercuts the incumbent who has provided a known level of service for a long time before.

The new player can't provide the services required as they bid so low to get it in the first place and the price bid won't support their operations so they ultimately withdraw or fall over completely.

We then find the original operator who had lost the business has cut staff and equipment because it lost the original contract and no longer has the business to support the ongoing costs.

The result is a shambles with the taxpayer left to foot the bill and in this case the remote areas of Australia possibly loosing the service it has always relied upon.

I wouldn't call the issue off topic , far from it, who comes to the aid of tourists in dire trouble in the bush....the RFDS of course.


.

That report in the Australian is misleading. It tends to suggest that RFDS will not be doing patient retrieval.

The facts are that in Victoria, Ambulance Victoria has leased the aircraft from RFDS. RFDS has nothing to do with patient retrieval, that has always been carried out by Ambulance Victoria. This is purely a commercial arrangement. Another supplier has come along, tendered and won the contract.

It is a ten year contract, worth about $70M that RFDS won 10 years ago, they hadn't previously had it.

The Minister was interviewed by John Faine on ABC radio about two weeks ago. His stand was that it is his job to spend Victorian taxpayers money in the best interests of the state; not subsidise the RFDS in other states.

I personally thought it be a little mean spirited as it only amounted to a few million. On top of that Victorians do travel in remote areas outside of Victoria and a little support of the RFDS is warranted IMHO.

Jim.

Not forgetting that "Careflight" is also a not for profit organisation.

Its not something new - VIc, NSW and QLD are all existing operations that have been run by contractors for many years.

The tenders are for State Ambulance Patient transfers, not for RFDS operations.

In this case the commercial arm of RFDS were the suppliers providing the service. (BTW RFDS haven't always held the contract, there were previous companies.). There are also other companies running similar services all over Australia.

Making Careflight, RFDS and other rescue infrastucture "lowest bidder" is appalling.

It should be federally funded to an appropriate level.

State penny-pinching to the detriment of fellow Australians is legally questionable and morally abhorrent.

I'll get off my soapbox now.

Some 25 yrs ago the contract to protect our shores, patrol boats, helicopters,base radio stations covering our coastline was granted to some idiot, the idiot did NOT have any of these vessels and so the contract was taken off him, he then sued the Federal Govt. and won.

Unbelieveable that not one Govt. department took the time to see if this idiot had the necessary equipment to back his tender.

I reckon there will be a massive backlash to this in the bush. They place real value on the RFDS.
The OKA has always attracted a lot of attention on the road and we joked about charging people for taking pics of it.
2 years ago we stopped joking and got a donation tin from the RFDS. In 2001 I had need to use the RFDS services. Now when people want to take pics we rattle the tin.
It NEVER fails to attract a donation, and many people are very generous.
In the case of th pic below, we stopped to check if people on the side of the road were OK. The story in the local Cape York paper was the result, PLUS about $30 in the tin!

A couple of weeks later we came across a bloke in a ute on a remote track with 2 flats and no way to fix either of them. We fixed both for him and $50 went into the RFDS tin.

This story is a tin that we need to "rattle" very loudly.

Cheers,
Peter
OKA196 Motorhome