Jane Prentice (Ryan, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

The committee received very strong evidence that this bill will impact most heavily on low-income families. GMHBA Health Insurance, a not-for-profit private health insurance provider in regional Victoria, said that this measure will result in a one per cent to 18 per cent, with an average of 10.6 per cent, price increase from 1 July 2013 and will impact on 40,000 private health insurers in their fund alone.

GMHBA have also said quite clearly, 'Taking the rebate away from those with a lifetime health-cover loading is, in fact, highly discriminatory to low-income earners who have taken responsibility for their own health by insuring themselves privately.' These bills are aggressive and, as the committee was told, they will heavily impact on low-income families. The coalition also noted in its dissenting report the impact of the government's unstable policy setting that has arisen as a result of the third change that the government is proposing in relation to private health insurance. It is putting forward measures before we can even discern the full impact of previous changes to private health insurance.

Passing this bill today would make that job even harder. Furthermore, the changes to the LHC loading create further complexity for patients and health-insurance providers. The previous means-testing changes had already created around 12 pricing structures for premiums, adding complexity to the private health insurance system. Providers have only until 1 July 2013 before these new regulations come into effect—a further increase in the compliance cost and the administrative burden on private health insurers. This bill will cease the claiming of private health insurance rebates through the Department of Human Services, which is known as the Incentives Payment Scheme—a change that will take effect from 1 July 2013.

The explanatory memorandum to this bill states that at present over 99.9 per cent of rebate claims are made through the Premium Reduction Scheme, PRS, and tax offset claiming, leaving very few rebate claims done through the incentive payment scheme. This figure has been confirmed by organisations in the private health insurance industry—such as Private Healthcare Australia, which has said that a limited number of people will be affected by this change.

If elected, the coalition will deliver a strong, prosperous economy and a safe, secure Australia. We will do this by building a five-pillar economy, including in-advance services and the delivery of better health services. We will do this by strengthening Medicare and taking pressures off the public hospital system by restoring the private health insurance rebate as soon as we can do so responsibly. We will also work with the states to ensure that hospitals are managed by local hospital boards so all communities can have better health services and better value for their money. We will improve mental health services, fund diabetes research and restore the commitment of the federal government to medical research. That is the coalition's plan for health services for Australians, and part of our plan to improve the lives of all Australians.

Taken together, this bill is a further move by this Gillard Labor government to damage the private health insurance industry which it has been doing since it was elected in 2007. Previously, Prime Minister Gillard and the Labor Party promised that there would not be any change to the private health insurance rebate, a promise to the Australian people on which they have now reneged. This bill is a backward step for this government. The government continues to make cuts and so-called savings measures that hurt the hip pocket of Australians. Today's changes will discourage Australians from obtaining private health insurance and, worse, low-income Australians will be disproportionately affected.

As the shadow minister for health highlighted when speaking on these bills, the record debt and deficits that the Labor government has racked up has left the budget in an urgent situation, which leaves the coalition with many tough decisions to make in this and other policy areas, as is so often the case. It will be therefore up to the coalition to right so many of the wrongs that this incompetent Labor government has left for Australia. Only the coalition can offer hope, reward and opportunity.

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