Abbott drops plan for healthcare co-payment

Sydney

PRIME Minister Tony Abbott on Tuesday abandoned a plan to radically reshape Australia's universal healthcare system by charging patients a fee to see their doctor, a major back flip for his struggling conservative government.

The A$7 (S$7.64) "co-payment" fee, which had been included in an unpopular May budget, was heavily criticised by the opposition and many in the healthcare sphere as a sign that Australia was moving towards a US healthcare model.

The policy reversal is the latest in a string for Mr Abbott, whose Liberal-National coalition govern…