Australia —
Federal Health Minister, Tony Abbott has defended new
laws which may result in people paying more for a hip
replacement or pacemaker, saying they are designed to
rein in spiralling health insurance premiums.
From mid-next year, health funds
will not cover the full cost of every prosthesis used in
surgery.
A committee will instead use
medical evidence to decide on an appropriate device for a
condition and if fund members want a more expensive
option they will have to pay the gap in price between the
two products.
Mr Abbott says the laws will be
reviewed again in 2006.
"This is not a savings
measure, it is designed to rein in the increases in
health insurance premiums in ways which do not
compromise clinical care," he said.
But Labor's health spokeswoman,
Julia Gillard, does not expect the laws to
work.
"Our concerns are private
health insurance premiums have gone up 22 per cent in
the last three years," she said.
"People are paying a lot of money
to be privately insured and now the Government is telling
them, when you draw down on that insurance and you need a
new hip or some sort of medical device you are going to
face a huge out-of-pocket."
