ACCC concerned about private health insurance practices

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has released its annual report on the private health insurance industry, highlighting concerns about how some insurers notify consumers of reductions in their insurance coverage and benefits.

The ACCC report finds that among some insurers, poor practices exist around notifying consumers of cuts to their insurance coverage and benefits.

These practices are leading to bill shock, inadequate cover and reduced access to health care. Some examples include insurers: not notifying consumers of reductions in their coverage or benefits, including changes to insurers’ arrangements with health care service providers using unclear, uninformative or misleading information to notify consumers of reductions in their insurance coverage or benefits.

The report also finds that complexity in the Australian private health insurance market continues to increase and this is making it harder for consumers to understand and react when insurers change their coverage or benefits.

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