Media releases

The new measures to accelerate roll-out of the My Health Record, the national electronic health records system, is an important step forward for Australia’s health, the Consumers Health Forum said today. The Chief Executive Officer of the Consumers Health Forum, Leanne Wells, said that the trials...

Suggestions that the Health Minister wants to deploy the $6 billion health insurance rebate to drive a better deal for consumers represent an exciting breakthrough in Government thinking, says the Consumers Health Forum. The Consumers Health Forum welcomes the comments by the Minister, Sussan Ley,...

Health insurance premiums on average will rise next month by more than three times the CPI inflation rate --- making private health cover that much harder to afford for many people, the Consumers Health Forum says. “This latest increase highlights the pressing need for fundamental reform of health...

The latest rise in out of pocket costs that private patients pay is yet more evidence of the need for serious reform in health insurance, the Consumers Health Forum says. The chart below, based on Australian Prudential Regulation Authority figures, highlights the graphic rise in the private health...

Patients would be spared the threatened co-payment for pathology, and taxpayers could save hundreds of millions if the lucrative pathology industry were subject to much-needed market-based reforms, a new report shows. “This significant report from the Grattan Institute shines a fresh light on the...

Consumers stand to benefit significantly if health funds pass on to their members savings generated by reform to the inflated pricing of medical devices, the Consumers Health Forum said today. “We welcome the Government’s planned reforms of prosthesis pricing to end a system which has generated...

It’s time consumers got a better deal out of health funds in return for the $6 billion a year health insurance subsidy, the Consumers Health Forum said today. “The weekend call by the Health Minister, Sussan Ley, for health funds to provide more information to justify their proposed premium rises...

As the Turnbull Government talks of the importance of innovation to all sectors of the economy, it is time to ask what of innovation in healthcare? Released today, the Consumer’s Health Forum submission to the Federal Budget provides ideas on where we need to centre the debate: investments in...

Consumers frustrated by the confusion and uncertainty of choosing the right health insurance policy will gain real buying power under a reform plan proposed by the Consumers Health Forum. The myCover plan would require health funds to offer simple, standardised hospital policies that enable...