The Turnbull Government is continuing to work with the private health insurance industry to make premiums more affordable for Australians.
We know that every dollar matters to Australian families and we are working with the sector to deliver further savings which will reduce private health insurance premium growth in 2018.
Prostheses such as artificial hips and knees contribute to around 14 per cent of hospital benefits paid by private health insurers.
We want to help medical device sponsors, private hospitals, day hospitals and private health insurers to identify ways to reduce costs – without reducing patient benefits or quality.
Keeping costs downs means keeping premiums down – and that’s what we want to achieve.
In February 2017, the Government delivered price reductions to around 2,400 medical devices which will deliver around $500 million of savings over six years to patients and private health insurance members.
Analysis of public and private hospital data by the Independent Hospital Pricing Authority confirms better value can be achieved for many of the 11,000 devices currently listed on the Prostheses List.
The Prostheses List Advisory Committee (PLAC), chaired by Professor Terry Campbell AM, in its Approach for Targeted Prostheses Reviews has set out a process to review devices and benefits on the Prostheses List.
The outcomes of these reviews, together with the collaborative approach with industry, will inform options to improve the prostheses arrangements and potential savings.
The PLAC will commence targeted reviews of the hip, knee, cardiac and spinal categories.
The Coalition is committed to Private Health Insurance and we’re committed to supporting the 13 million Australians that have taken out cover.
We recognise that every dollar matters to families – and that’s why we’re continuing to support affordable premiums with the private health insurance rebate – worth around $6 billion per year.
In stark contrast, Labor has always hated Private Health Insurance. In Government, Labor cut $4 billion from the Private Health Insurance rebate and means tested it.
For more information about the PLAC Reform Work Plan, visit:
http://health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/health-privatehealth-PLAC
(ENDS)