Ignatius Li (Partner at Deloitte) interviews Anthony Lowe (former CEO of the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia) and Jamie Reid (Principal at Finity Consulting) about the recommendations and research in their Dialogue thought leadership paper "Private Health insurance Bill Shock: What Can Insurers Do to Help?"

In the paper, Anthony and Jamie discuss the surprising and distressing impact of out-of-pocket costs for those with private health insurance.

“...a recent study of men who had been diagnosed with prostate cancer showed median out of pocket expenses for those with PHI were $6,000 compared to $2,000 for those without. Although private cover does provide the benefits of choice of specialist, private rooms and generally lower waiting times, the cost differential is significant."

Currently PHI does not cover many of the factors that drive current treatment costs including:
- Medicare pricing
- New technology
- Bureaucratic hurdles
- Ancillary expenses (travel, medical costs)

The Dialogue paper suggests that a lump sum payment of $5000 to those affected by a cancer diagnosis would be an effective and affordable way for insurers to encourage customer satisfaction, quality of life and reduce severe financial impact.

Listen in to find out more on Anthony and Jamie's research and innovative recommendations to help alleviate 'Bill Shock'

Download the Transcript here
https://actuaries.asn.au/Library/Miscellaneous/2018/TheDialoguePHITranscript.pdf

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