Confidence in Australia’s private health care system continues to grow with the latest statistics showing more people are taking out hospital and general treatment cover.
Cover for hospital treatment grew by 59,879 persons in the three months to March 2021, while general treatment cover for dental, optical and physio saw an even greater increase of 87,971, according to APRA’s quarterly statistics.
“This is the third consecutive quarter of growth in private health insurance numbers,” said Matthew Koce, CEO of Members Health, the peak body for not-for-profit health funds.
“According to the APRA data, well over half the Australian population have health insurance, with 13.8 million people holding cover for general treatment.
During the March 2021 quarter private health insurers helped cover over 24,903,975 General Treatment services and 1,113,446 hospital episodes. Total fund benefits increased by 2.1 per cent for the 12 months to March 2021, to hit a record high of $22.2 billion.
“Australia’s unique and world-leading mixed public and private health care system provides consumers with choice around fast access to high quality care,” said Mr Koce.
“COVID-19 has also had a profound impact on public hospital waits with the value and importance of the private health system becoming much more apparent over recent times.
Public hospital waits have blown out to well beyond a year for many procedures so more people are turning to the private health system for timely access to care and peace of mind.
Public health waits have become so dire that there are claims of 12 month queues for specialist consultations just to be put onto the official hospital waiting list. That means waiting around 12 months for a medical consultation and then another 12 months to get surgery in a public hospital.
“The private health system acts as a pressure valve, reducing pressure on public hospitals by freeing up beds for those that need them most. The growth in private health insurance participation shows things are moving in the right direction with the private health system shouldering more of the burden.”
“As many of the thousands of expats return home to Australia from overseas, it is only logical that many of them will need to take out health insurance cover. We expect this growth trend to continue further over the coming months,” Mr Koce said.
Members Health is the peak industry body for an alliance of 26 health funds that are not-for-profit or part of a member-owned group, regional or community based. They all share the common ethic of putting their members’ health before profit. Our funds represent the interests of more than 3.9 million Australians.
Members Health is the peak industry body for an alliance of 26 health funds that are not-for-profit or part of a member-owned group, regional or community based. They all share the common ethic of putting their members’ health before profit. Our funds represent the interests of more than 3.9 million Australians.
Media Contact
Eddie.Morton@membershealth.com.au