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Harney defers insurance move
[Posted: Mon 27/06/2005 - www.irishhealth.com]
Health Minister Mary Harney has decided not to trigger the controversial risk equalisation payments in the health insurance market at this time,it was announced today.
The Tanaiste said the Government is committed to the maintenance of community rating and the stressed that risk equalisation is a necessary support, in certain circumstances, in a community-rated market such as ours.
Under risk equalisation, one health insurance firm pays a subsidy to another to compensate it for having a greater number of high risk and more expensive subscribers.
The Tánaiste said an introduction of risk equalisation payments 'at this time' would be premature in advance of a Government decision regarding
the commercial status of the VHI.
She said she intends to bring proposals to Government on the status of the VHI shortly.
She added that deferring a decision on risk equalisation would allow time for further corroboration of trends both in risk profile and competition in the market, and in this regard she looks forward to receiving the Health Insurance Authority's next report on insurance market trends in Ireland.
If risk equalisation had been triggered, BUPA, which has a younger and less high-risk patient profile, would have had to pay the VHI up to 34 million euro in compensation.
BUPA is currently challenging the risk equalisation scheme in the courts.
BUPA had already indicated it may have to consider pulling out of Ireland if it had to make huge compensation payments to VHI.
VHI, for its part had claimed it would plunge into financial difficulties if it did not get the subsidies under risk equalisation.
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John(johnwilliams) Posted:
29/06/2005 08:21 |
| It is outrageous that Mary Harney, Minister for Health is responsible, by this decision, for further increase in VHI contributions. The VHI is the preferred health insurer for the vast majority of the Irish people and yet for purely ideological reasons the Minister is either going to put the company into serious financial difficulties or she is going to allow it hike up its rates. All, so that foreign medical insurance companies can make extra profits. |
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Anonymous
Posted:
29/06/2005 12:41 |
| john williams - you say the VHI is the preferred health insurer - I assume you are basing this on the fact that it has more members, but that is because they were the only insurer for years and research has shown that people are slow to change insurers ( similar to changing banks - people rarely do it). I chose to go with Bupa because it was cheaper simple as that. If VHI had offered me a better deal I would have gone with them. That is what competition is all about. And your comment about \'foreigh insurance\' - just as a matter of interest, what about the new insurer Vivas? Also you mention the move will mean VHI has to hike up their prices - in case you haven\'t noticed they\'ve been doing that for the last few years, every year, so it\'s just another excuse for them really. |
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Anonymous
Posted:
29/06/2005 12:49 |
| Exactly! If you don't like vhi's prices then switch. The others can't refuse you cover, no matter what age you are. And the VHI have always said that this wouldn't stop their price increases so you'd still be paying more anyway. |
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John(johnwilliams) Posted:
29/06/2005 23:49 |
| To the two previous Anons. You both oversimplify a complex subject. Turner's cartoon in today's Irish Times will help to explain it. Mary Harney over-ruled the advice of the Health Insurance Authority whish she set up for the sole purpose of advising her. Again for those that dont understand the wider implications of the decision of the Minister for Health, both USA and New Zealand have gone down this road. The Health Service in the USA (called an 'industry' over there) is controlled by health insurance companies. They own hospitals, pharmacies and doctor's practices. If a medicine or a procedure is too dear it is not supplied. The USA is considered to have the worst health service in the developed world and that is the road our ideological Minister wants to go down (closer to Boston than Berlin!). New Zealand is interesting. It's right-wing Governemnt decided some years ago to 'privatise' the health service. It was such a fiasco that the governemnt was voted out of office and the new governemnt went about correcting the mistakes. One point relevant to this discussion, it introduced risk equalisation in health insurance. Guess who is the major player in the NZ market demanding that the other insureres compensate it? Yes, BUPA. Most countries, which have private health insurers, have some form of risk equalisation so that older people will not have to pay prohibitively expensive subscriptions. My own view is that health is a public service and the profit takers have no part to play. |
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Anonymous
Posted:
30/06/2005 09:16 |
| John Williams, Mary Harney is not responsible for VHI hiking up their rates. VHI is responsible for VHI hiking up their rates, as they have been doing for many years. If you don't like it - then switch. I did, for that very reason. |
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Anonymous
Posted:
30/06/2005 11:26 |
| John, risk equalisation (BUPA being forced to subsidize VHI) HAS NOTHIGN TO DO WITH OLDER PEOPLE PAYING MOE. tHIS IS PREVENTED BY A SYSTEM OF COMMUNITY RATING. If you don't like VHI's persistent rates hike, then switch. A lot of people have already voted with their feet. |
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Brian(DTD16818) Posted:
30/06/2005 16:11 |
| To Johnwilliams: Just two points of clarification. Mary Harney didn't set up the HIA, according to their website they were set up in 2001 by Micheal Martin. She didn't follow their recommendation but as far as I can understand she was never obliged to. Also, as far as I can tell, bupa doesn't operate at all in NZ. They are in Australia, but Australia and NZ are two entirely different countries. I spent 6 months in Australia last year and woe betide anyone who thinks they are the same nation! |
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John(johnwilliams) Posted:
05/07/2005 19:49 |
| The article by Mary Harney in todays Irish Times explains better than I can the neo-liberal mindset of the people who are now running the health service. Not once does she refer to 'patients' but she refers many times to 'consumers'. Health according to this ideology is a commodity to be bought and sold like tins of beans and packets of cornflakes. That means that those who can afford it can buy the best health treatment and those who cannot do without. To Brian 30.06.05 Micheal Martin was Minister for Health when the HIA was set up but Mary Harney was Tanaiste. It is irrelevant because the point is the government established an expensive quango to advise the Minister for Health. She ignores the advice and looks for advice from even more expensive private consultants (Talk about a waste of taxes.) Re BUPA's presence in New Zealand & Australia, you may well be right. I heard this point on a radio discussion with a BUPA representative present and he did not correct it. The point is BUPA,as do all commercial companies, wants to make the most money it can but it entered the Irish health insurance market knowing that risk-equalisation was on the statute book. To Anon 30.06.05 the Minister for Health in effect runs the VHI. She can order price increases and order price reductions. I recall when previous Ministers for Health 'raided' the VHI for substantial funds for their own pet projects. To the other Anon 30.06.05. Risk equalisation is an integral part of community rating as Mary Harney herself has admitted. If there is no risk equalisation community rating collapses and older people will pay much more. Today's contribution (under NEWS) by the editor of irishhealth.com shows that the VHI is not dearer despite the claims of many posters. |
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Anonymous
Posted:
06/07/2005 11:30 |
| John, not al those who avail of the halth service are pateints. Most certainly not those availaing of screenign or preventative medicine. The vhi gets invcrease after increase. I have researched it and it most certainly is dearer, with less benefits for me, personally. If there is no risk equalisation community rating will not collapse and older people will just vote with their feet. |
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