Life-time community rating is a quick fix but not a solution

The private insurance push demonstrates that the Government has no intention of ensuring fairer access to healthcare. See here for Medical Independent column on 15 May 2015.
In classic Department of Health newspeak, so-called ‘lifetime community rating’ means the opposite to the very principle of community rating. Up to 1 May 2015, Ireland’s private health insurance system operated under a system of ‘community rating’, whereby everybody was charged the same premium for a health insurance plan, irrespective of their age, gender or health status.

Government’s life-time community rating is propping up the two-tier health system that they promised to dismantle

Column from Irish Independent on 13 March 2015

The central plank of this Government’s ‘democratic revolution’ for health was to develop a ‘universal, single-tiered health service, which guarantees access based on need, not income’. This was to be achieved by giving free GP care for all by early 2016 and rolling out universal health insurance in 2016.

More switchers than leavers in the private health insurance market

See here for my column from Medical Independent on survey carried out on health insurance from 15 May 2014

An insurance reform roadmap

If implemented, the recommendations of the report into the cost of private health insurance would make a difference to the Minister’s plans for universal care. Column from Medical Independent on 23 January 2014.

Health hustings on 17 February and update on parties’ health policies

Listen here for my Drivetime radio slot on health hustings and anything new the parties had to say on health

Failure to reform health system behind VHI rise

See article I wrote in today’s Irish Times