Chapter 271: Chapter 245: Medical Reimbursement Policy

It was precisely because of the influx of a large number of immigrants and the increasing involvement of indigenous people in agricultural labor that, in 1907, the total grain output of Australasia broke through to a new high of 6.7 million tons since the establishment of the nation.

If we look at the current per capita consumption of grain in Australasia, the grain produced in 1907 alone would be enough to support over 20 million people, let alone the various meats and dairy products brought by the developed animal husbandry in Australasia.

It is also due to the increasing number of immigrants and indigenous people that the per capita cultivated land area in Australasia has increased by about 10%, even with an increase in the agricultural population.

If the population growth rate in 1907 is maintained, it will take another five years for the population of Australasia to officially break through ten million.

There should be more than ten million people before World War I, although not comparable to other powers, but the population issue is not so severe.

More importantly, the proportion of British descendants in Australasia has always been above the 70% qualified line, which is also a major factor in the stability of Australasia.

Also rising steadily is the per capita annual income of Australasia. Since Arthur came to Australia, the per capita annual income in this region has been growing continuously.

By the end of 1907, the per capita annual income in Australasia had reached 43 Australian dollars, with 44 Australian dollars in the Australian region and 40 Australian dollars in the New Zealand region.

The per capita incomes of the two colonial regions of New Guinea and Dili were 35 Australian dollars and 14 Australian dollars, respectively.

The per capita annual income in Dili has little reference value, as Dili has only been a colony of Australasia for a few months, and the most important task at present in Dili is to restore order and stability.

At present, Australia and New Zealand have successively entered the dream of a happy life, and with their basic needs for food and clothing met, the medical and educational needs of the Australian people have also been well satisfied.

Currently, the people of Australasia have generally accumulated savings, and a considerable number of them have some assets.

Under the patronage of the royal financial group, Australasia has seen the birth of a large number of petty bourgeoisie during this period, as well as a large number of small workshops and factories, and privately-run shops and stalls.

These have also made a huge contribution to the economic prosperity of Australasia, and they have also indirectly driven the development of the Australasian economy.

At present, Sydney has three busiest commercial streets, with merchants from all over the world selling and promoting their products.

With the economic development of Australasia, its fame in Europe has been growing.

This is also the reason why there are more and more European immigrants in Australasia. With the guarantee of food, clothing, housing, and medical care and education, the attractiveness of Australasia to immigrants seems to be no less than that of the United States.

Of course, the most attractive thing is that Australasia not only has no black chocolate, but also has a large amount of indigenous labor for free and can employ a large amount of indigenous labor.

Although it is in the form of leasing, after all, they also have enough labor to work for themselves. This makes the dream of many Europeans who want to become farm owners and factory owners come true, as after all, being a capitalist themselves is much better than being oppressed by others in the United States.

After all, the welfare policies for the Australian workers and common people have long been spread in Europe and the United States, and many people have a good impression of Arthur, a monarch who strives to protect the interests of the common people, even if they live in a free republic.

Even in countries like Britain and Germany that are recognized as world powers, people cannot guarantee that their treatment will be as firmly protected as the treatment of people in Australasia.

Although the income of Australasian workers is not comparable to that of the powerful nations, they do not have to worry about wage deductions, oppression, or exploitation.

Not only will they receive their wages on time, but Australasian workers will also enjoy legal holidays, triple overtime pay on holidays, and benefits such as holiday blessings and celebration gifts.

After all, large factories have a large number of indigenous laborers to exploit, so they naturally don’t have to take a lot of risks to exploit those workers.

Indigenous labor is so handy to use, you don’t have to worry about their lives, they don’t have to worry about food when they’re in a bad mood, and every time an indigenous person dies, the government will send a new one to replace them, so there’s no need to worry about a shortage of indigenous labor.

After all, the areas currently controlled by Australasia alone have millions of indigenous people, and the number of indigenous people in the Dutch East Indies and Southeast Asian regions reaches hundreds of millions, so the rate at which Australasia consumes indigenous people is completely incomparable to the rate at which they reproduce.

At present, the region where indigenous people are most frequently used in agriculture is the New Guinea Colony. The New Guinea Colony has only more than 30,000 people, but has as many as 100,000 indigenous people engaged in agricultural labor.

New Guinea’s agricultural output accounts for one-thirteenth of the total output of the Kingdom of Australasia, reaching about 520,000 tons.

Just the agricultural products produced in New Guinea alone are enough to support the three regions of New Guinea, Dili, and New Zealand.

More importantly, New Guinea has a large area, and the development of arable land has only just begun.

If several hundred thousand indigenous people are invested in this area, it could become the granary of Australasia. By that time, the output of New Guinea alone would be enough to support a population of 10 million.

Thanks to the domestic grain output, Australasia has currently established one or more large grain warehouses in every province except for Dili. The largest one is Newcastle grain warehouse in New South Wales State, with a storage capacity of more than 200,000 tons, which can meet the annual grain demand for millions of people.

The reason for the large scale of Newcastle grain warehouse lies in the limited area of the Capital Territory, which naturally places greater emphasis on industrial and economic development.

The Sydney grain warehouse in the Capital Territory has a storage capacity of only about 100,000 tons, so part of Newcastle grain warehouse is prepared for Sydney as well.

Australasia’s domestic grain warehouses together have a total storage capacity of close to 1.5 million tons, enough to feed six million people for a year in theory.

Considering the developed animal husbandry in Australasia, even if there is no grain output in a year, there is no need to worry about any famine.

When the grain in the warehouse is full, it will be sold to neighboring countries in need of grain, and the vacancy will be replenished with new grain.

After all, food does not last long; it is not only prone to mold and insects but also experiences a significant decline in taste and texture.

At present, annual grain exports can bring a lot of income to Australasia, particularly during the East Asia famine period when grain exports earned them a fortune.

Of course, it is due to the abundance of domestic grain production and the development of animal husbandry that food and meat products in Australasia have always had low value, making it very common for people to eat their fill and eat meat there.

Actually, the number of hospitals has not changed a lot, since building hospitals requires not only a large amount of funds but also experienced doctors to run them.

However, the Ministry of Health did not remain idle in 1907. It issued a medical policy that greatly relieved people’s burden in medical treatment.

For instance, if the single medical treatment cost exceeds 20 Australian dollars, it can be included in the Australasian medical reimbursement range.

The reimbursement scope generally does not exceed 30%, but at least 10% should be provided.

If the single medical treatment cost exceeds the local per capita annual income, the reimbursement scope generally ranges between 20% and 40%.

If the single medical treatment cost is twice or more than the local per capita annual income, the reimbursement scope generally ranges between 40% and 50%.

This policy mainly takes care of patients with major illnesses, allowing most Australasians to have the possibility of treatment when facing severe illnesses.

After all, having a serious illness is still a heavy burden for most Australasians, as most family savings in Australasia do not exceed 100 Australian dollars.

As for medical treatment costing less than twenty Australian dollars, although the government has some welfare policies, the reduction ratio is generally below 5%.

After all, it is more common to have various minor illnesses, and if too much is reimbursed, it will also be a problem for the government’s finances.

Although the intensity of the reimbursement policy does not seem so great, it is rare in today’s world.

It is precisely because of such medical benefits that Australasians are very proud of their country and government and always remember the changes that Arthur brought to their lives.

Of course, this is also an important reason for enhancing Australasia’s attractiveness to immigrants. Such medical preferential policies are very rare, even in top powers like Britain and Germany, which would not dare do so.

The reason why Australasia issued this medical policy is that 50% of the welfare policy is funded by the royal family.

It is equivalent to the government only needing to pay half of the money, and Australasia currently has a small population, so the financial burden is not too significant.

However, such medical welfare conditions are very attractive to Europeans.

Even the Europeans who pride themselves on being civilized would not dream of introducing such preferential policies in their countries.

Because it is a huge burden on national finances, even a little carelessness could lead to national bankruptcy.

More importantly, it is maybe possible for a country to afford such welfare treatment policy, but it’s easy to go from frugality to extravagance and difficult to go from extravagance to frugality.

In the future, if the government wants to change the policy, it would depend on whether those who enjoy the policy agree or not.

This is the real reason why most European countries are still indifferent even though they know that doing so would greatly rally popular support.

If the current shortage of medical supplies, especially medicines, can be resolved, more than half of the medical problems in Australasia would be solved.