Is Private Healthcare in Crisis?
The media are publishing so much around the rising cost of private healthcare and claiming the rise is a reflection of how specialist or private doctors charge. Lets look at the facts:
1) The private system currently does close to 75% of elective surgery in Australia. What do you think will happen to the public system, already acopic, if they suddenly have even a 10% increase in more patients to deal with?
2) The public system, particularly in Queensland, recognises that they are inefficient, and is currently directing public patients in to the private system; in Qld, its called Surgery Connect.
3) According to APRA (the Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority), the average gap for FY1617 was $304.
4) According to APRA, the private health insurance industry in Australia made a net profit (ie after tax) of 1.5 billion dollars for FY1617, which is a 100 million dollar increase from the year before. This is despite around 130 000 people dropping their insurance, and having around 150 000 less “episodes of care”.
How on earth does this represent a crisis in private health care in Australia, apart from the poor policy holder?