Public policy and private health insurance: distributional impact on public and private hospital usage.
OBJECTIVE
To study the effectiveness of recent private health insurance (PHI) reforms, in particular the 30% rebate and Lifetime Health Cover, in terms of their stated aim of reducing the load on public hospitals.


METHODS
Combines the use of two new projection models - "Private Health Insurance" (PHI) and "New South Wales Hospitals" that use public and private hospital inpatient data from 1996-97 to 1999-2000, and NSW population and private health insurance coverage statistics.


RESULTS
With the PHI reforms 15% fewer individuals would use public hospitals in 2010 than without these reforms (around 18% fewer among the 40% most affluent Australians and 9% among the 40% least affluent). Lower public hospital usage would mainly be due to Lifetime Health Cover.


CONCLUSIONS
If the PHI reforms remain in place, in 2010 a significant proportion of hospital use would be redirected away from the public sector and towards the private sector, with the shift being greatest among better-off Australians.
Walker
Agnes E
AE
Australian Centre for Economic Research on Health, Australian National University, Barry Drive (Building 62), Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia. Agnes.Walker@anu.edu.au
Percival
Richard
R
Thurecht
Linc
L
Pearse
Jim
J
D016304:Hospitals, Private / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006779:Hospitals, Public / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007348:Insurance, Health; D009313:National Health Programs; D009517:New South Wales; D017149:Private Sector; D011640:Public Policy