Leaders set to clash on health policy

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott plans to "counter lies with fact" when he debates
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd on a national showdown on health on Tuesday.
Neither Mr Abbott nor Mr Rudd is expected to put forward any major policy proposals
when they meet for the nationally-televised lunchtime debate at the National Press
Club.
Labor goes into the debate with its health reform proposal on the table and is
expected to flesh out some details of the ambitious plan for the commonwealth to
take majority control of funding for public hospitals.
Mr Rudd is still struggling to win unequivocal backing from the states and
territories for his proposal and hasn't been invited to take part in a telephone
hook-up between leaders on Tuesday.
They are planning to discuss their priorities ahead of a Council of Australian
Governments (CoAG) meeting on April 19.
While health is shaping up as one of the biggest issues of the election year,
observers aren't expecting much from the clash, mindful it is likely to yield little
in the way of policy and see a recycling of well-worn themes.
The Rudd government has repeatedly accused Mr Abbott of ripping $1 billion out of
health when he was the portfolio minister.
"Mr Abbott has two challenges - explain why he took $1 billion out of the public
hospital system and ... (explain) his plan and how will he fund it for the future,"
Mr Rudd told reporters.
The claim is based on the fact the Howard government reduced planned spending on
public hospitals by $1 billion in 2003 when former health minister Kay Patterson
negotiated a new five-year deal with the states.
Mr Rudd urged Australians to remember Mr Abbott had promised to deliver a plan for
the health and hospital system three years ago but it never eventuated.
"How can you trust a man who three years ago promised to develop a new plan for
Australia's health and hospital system, and three years later, has failed to deliver
even on that," he said.
Mr Abbott has his own strategy to take on Mr Rudd but knows what to expect.
Preparing for the debate with health spokesman Peter Dutton on Monday, Mr Abbott
indicated he planned a calm rebuttal of those claims.
"We all know the prime minister will want to blaggard me and he'll want to besmirch
our record but, without being in any way over the top with a response, I think we've
got to just calmly counter lies with fact," Mr Abbott said.
He wants to hold the government's policy up to the light.
"There are enormous gaps in it," Mr Abbott told ABC radio.
Some of the issues he believes need to be addressed include the fate of country
hospitals and how states will be held to their 40 per cent share of funding.
He is pushing Mr Rudd to deliver more beds into the system but won't say how he
would deal with the problem.
Both leaders are hoping to use the debate as a springboard as they head into a
seven-week parliamentary hiatus, where they will be keen to win over voters.
According to the latest poll by Essential Research, 58 per cent of people support
the Labor hospital plan, while 12 per cent oppose it.
On the question of the economy, however, the Liberals are seen to have the upper hand.
The Liberals ranked higher than Labor on the question of keeping interest rates