Australia’s public hospital system is jointly funded by the Australian Government and state and
territory governments and is administered by state and territory health departments.
Your contribution to the health care system is based on your income and is made through taxes and the Medicare levy.
Australia is among countries ( others include the UK, Canada) with universal health insurance cover. As expected,
people tend to be more healthier, as measured by measures of death and illness (5.8 per 1000 live births, Age-standardised death rates puts it in the
5th lowest among developed nations (1998),Life expectancy (1996) was 78.2 years ). See CIA factbook for more such data.
So, unlike in the USA, where without insurance you are roast, and as an immigrant (e.g. Green Card) you are expected
not to rely on the Government public health insurance (medicaid/Medicare), Australia's healthcare system may be a benefit to
new legal immigrants.
