More Australians Covered by Private Health Insurance
More than 122,000 people have taken out private hospital cover in the six months since the introduction of income testing of the private health insurance rebate.
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15 February 2013
More than 122,000 people have taken out private hospital cover in the six months since the introduction of income testing of the private health insurance rebate, Minister for Health Tanya Plibersek said today.
“More than 10.7 million Australians have hospital cover, the highest number in 37 years,” Ms Plibersek said.
“The figures make a joke of Tony Abbott’s negative claims that 1.6 million people would drop their private hospital insurance.”
Figures released today by the Private Health Insurance Administration Council found that 39,363 people took out private hospital insurance in the December 2012 quarter. This follows an increase of 83,128 people in the September quarter.
“Despite Tony Abbott’s claims, the number of Australians with private health insurance is continuing to grow under the Gillard Government,” Ms Plibersek said.
“An additional 1.3 million people have added hospital cover under this Government, and the percentage of Australians with hospital cover is the highest in 24 years.
“Means testing the private health insurance rebate means that low and middle income Australians no longer subsidise the health insurance of higher income Australians. Nearly eight million private health insurance policy holders haven’t been affected by the changes.”
Ms Plibersek said families could save hundreds on private health insurance by using the government’s health fund website.
“Families can make an informed decision by using privatehealth.gov.au to compare policies and save on their premiums,” Ms Plibersek said.
“I’d urge everyone with private health insurance to take a few minutes to visit the website and find the best deal.”
Further information:
More information is available at the Private Health Insurance Administration Council Website
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