Could requiring health insurance take pressure off the health system?

Requiring people to have health insurance could take some pressure off our health system. 

Chronic underfunding has put the public health system under strain, leading to stretched emergency departments, lengthy wait times, and difficulty accessing care. 

The problems are compounded by a shortage of medical staff. 

Financial Services Council CEO Kirk Hope told Kerre Woodham that insurers are incentivised to keep people healthy, as they have to pay out claims if they're not. 

He says it might look like access to different types of medications to keep people out of the hospital, which creates a fence at the top of the cliff as opposed to an ambulance at the bottom. 

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