Posted by Michael Wonder on 07 Aug 2018
Health insurance needs in-depth scrutiny in the public interest
7 August 2018 - Discounts on health insurance premiums for young people under 30 would erode the community-sharing principles of private cover, further entrenching a two-tiered system, the Consumers Health Forum said today.
In its submission to the Senate Community Affairs Community inquiry into health insurance legislation, the Consumers Health Forum said a Government proposal to allow health funds to introduce age-based discounts would undermine community rating, a fundamental principle of health insurance aimed at ensuring equal premiums regardless of age or health status.
“Such changes to health insurance rules seem designed largely in the health funds’ interests to shore up declining member numbers but go nowhere far enough to respond to the frustration and concerns many consumers have about their health cover,” the CEO of the Consumers Health Forum, Leanne Wells, said.
