HUNT PARALYSED ON PHI AS CHOICE CALLS FOR REVIEW

CHRIS BOWEN MP.
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5 years ago
HUNT PARALYSED ON PHI AS CHOICE CALLS FOR REVIEW
CHRIS BOWEN MP
Today’s calls from CHOICE, for the Government to review the value for money for consumers, are yet another crisis call regarding Private Health Insurance.

Greg Hunt arrogantly sits paralysed on taking action, while premiums for health insurance soar and consumers continue to walk away.

The key message out of today’s report on the Government’s partly delivered ‘Gold, Silver, Bronze’ reforms is that consumers aren’t getting value for money when it comes to their health insurance.

Labor agrees with CHOICE. The only way to address the private health insurance crisis is with a root and branch review of the system.

It is time the Government listened. This is the second crisis call this week, with the Private Health Industry yesterday calling to privatise access to general practitioners and other services.

This suggestion would be a dangerous step towards Americanising our health care system. Labor has always and will always believe that it is not your credit card that should determine your access to health care.

But this is yet another symptom of a Government so devoid of agenda they are relying on big insurers to drive urgent policy reform.

It’s hard to know what the story is with this Minister who is loose with the truth when it comes to Private Health Insurance.

In July the Minister went from claiming he’d accomplished the “most significant reforms to private health insurance in over a decade” to ten days later boasting about launching a fresh review on private health insurance, without any detail.  
 
Last week in Senate Estimates, senior officials confirmed they had not been commissioned an official review from the Minister.
 
This Government is sitting on its hands when it comes to soaring private health premiums and record out of pocket costs and waiting times.
 
The time for a review into private health insurance is now.
 
Health and Aged Care