An independent chairman is to be appointed to the consultative forum on health insurance in order to “effect real cost reductions” in the private health insurance market, Minister for Health James Reilly said last night.
The forum – made up of representatives from the main health insurance companies, the Health Insurance Authority and the Department of Health – was established last year in order to address health insurance costs.
The issue came to the fore over the weekend when insurers warned of a 30 per cent hike in health insurance premiums by the end of the year as a result of Government plans to charge private patients the full cost of using public hospital beds.
Dr Reilly said the appointment would be made in order to oversee “a process of review” of a number of areas to give effect to “real cost reductions” in the private health insurance market.
These include utilisation management, the development of clinical audit as a tool to ensure appropriate care, provider reviews, and the continued transition of procedures to lower cost in medically appropriate settings.
