Category: Featured

SIMPLER PRIVATE HEALTH INSURANCE POLICIES COULD LEAD TO LONGER PUBLIC WAITING LISTS

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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The Government will be hoping these changes will deliver another record low premium increase. Last year the medical technology industry delivered cuts to the price of medical technology which delivered the lowest premium increases in 17 years.

Due to delays in Parliamentary process the Minister has provided insurers with the option to transition to the new policies by April 2020 but it is anticipated the major providers will be ready on 1 April 2019.

The Minister for Health, Greg Hunt MP said upon announcing the changes that consumers, for the first time, will be provided clearer information to allow them to compare different health insurance policies and choose the cover that best suits their needs.

“These reforms will have an overall neutral to -0.3% impact on premiums compared with current policy settings,” Minister Hunt said.

These reforms, whilst welcome, do not address the fundamental issue around the overall value of private health insurance. CHF maintains its call for an independent inquiry into private health insurance.

“CHF has long argued for consumer-friendly reforms in health insurance to reduce the frustration and uncertainty so many people experience. We believe the development of these four tiers of cover offers a path to more certain and transparent arrangements,” CEO of the Consumers Health Forum, Leanne Wells said.

But plenty of stakeholders have expressed concerns consumers will have to pay more for an effective product that covers them for the things they need.

President of the Australian Society of Ophthalmologists Dr Peter Sumich says under the reforms it will be “cheaper to pay for your private cataract surgery from your own pocket and save the money you would spend on a poor insurance product”.

Chronic pain treatments will only have to be included in the most expensive Gold level cover.

“We don’t want a situation where many are forced to drop their PHI cover altogether, further exacerbating access issues across the public health system,” Carol Bennett, CEO of Pain Australia said.

The Medical Technology Association of Australia (MTAA) has been supportive of the Government efforts to simplify and make transparent private health insurance policies but remains concerned of the unintended consequences.

“It’s disappointing that consumers that need access to life saving and life changing medical devices will in most cases need a gold level policy to do so,” Ian Burgess CEO of the MTAA said.

“There is only one definite winner today – big private health insurers. The Deloitte modelling that informed this outcome assumes that private health insurance industry would maintain profit levels of 11.5%.

“We endorse AMA’s comments the Deloitte Report should be released, analysed and debated. We have simply been seeking a 12-month delay to these changes, accompanied by a 12-month information campaign, to ensure consumers can make an informed choice,” Mr Burgess said.

Stephen Duckett, a health economist at the Grattan Institute, warned that the new rules will leave thousands of consumers facing significant premium increases.

Even private health insurers now admit that some consumers will be worse off.

“There will be winners and losers but the Government’s PHI Reform process must deliver real change to improve the affordability and value of private health cover. There’s no alternative,” Dr Rachel David, CEO of Private Healthcare Australia said.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Who Do We Trust On Health Apps?

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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The survey found that almost 90 percent of respondents said that there is a role for the government in regulating health and wellness apps. Almost 60 percent of respondents said that the government should review and rate health apps, while 31 percent said that the government should fund a separate organisation to perform the role.

The survey is the first to be undertaken through Australia’s Health Panel which has been established by the Consumers Health Forum to harness community sentiment on contemporary consumer health issues.

It also found that consumers were most likely to trust recommendations by general practitioners and pharmacists on health and wellbeing apps. The results indicate that consumers trust their peers to give good recommendations on apps, but not completely. ‘Big tech’ avenues such as search engines like Google and Apple are much less likely to be trusted sources of health apps advice.

The CEO of the Consumers Health Forum, Leanne Wells, said the survey results highlighted the growing public demand for credible and effective oversight of health apps given their accelerating reach into every aspect of health care.

“As consumers increasingly turn to health apps to aid and monitor their health and treatment, there’s clearly a need for people to know whether they can trust the apps, and whether they offer the best health option available and are worth the investment in time and money.

“To ensure the health system makes the most of the rapid developments in digital technology now gripping health care, the Federal Government should be moving now to assess how best to support and regulate the safety and quality of health apps.

“Given the rapid entry of health and wellbeing apps into health care, it is time now for the Government, consumers, health providers and app companies to come together to determine the fundamental principles that should govern this activity.

“The CSIRO’s recent Future of Health report states that there were approximately 318,000 mobile health apps as at last year. While that presents increasing opportunities for consumers to manage their own health, many remain unregulated despite making health claims, and they have no accountability for health outcomes.

“As the CSIRO report suggests, highly engaged consumers are demanding faster, cheaper, more personalised and preventative health solutions. There is enormous benefit to be gained by more widespread use of health and wellbeing apps to monitor and self-manage health conditions, but also to ‘nudge’ good lifestyle behaviours and choices,” said Ms Wells.

“However, the digital divide in the community is real: enhancing digital health literacy for people to benefit from this technology is becoming more important. As the CSIRO report says we need to develop robust consumer rating tools, symptom checker apps, and publicly available information sources for such health services.

“The value of the findings of Australia’s Health Panel is that while they reflect the responses of a modest sample of 260 respondents, they nonetheless give an insight into how people are viewing this relatively new and still largely unregulated development in health care.

“Importantly, the sentiments expressed by Panel participants flag areas where we need to do more research and policy development. When health and wellness apps are such that they start interacting with the more formal health system, further questions emerge such as whether they should form part of a treatment plan or even be prescribed and whether they should attract government funding in some form.

“The survey highlights the important role Australia’s Health Panel can play in bringing to policy-makers’ attention the thinking of the community on vital issues,” Ms Wells said.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Is the CV relevant today?

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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]When I asked our HR Business Partner why I was interviewing this candidate, I was told to ‘just wait until you meet her’. Fifteen minutes into the interview, I knew why. She just had it. And by had it, I mean she had the innate leadership talent we look for, despite her lack of relevant experience. We hired her and never looked back.

I’ve been telling this story quite frequently over the past few weeks after Stryker was named #2 on the Great Places to Work list; our third year in the top two. I’ve been asked what the secret to this success is.

For Stryker, the foundation of our people strategy is how we recruit. Hiring is the single most important decision a manager can make. Get it right and it pays back in spades. Get it wrong and you pay for it for years to come. This isn’t rocket science and I would think most organisations buy into this approach. The hard part is living it day in, day out. To help us, we focus on 3 key areas:

  • Our hiring philosophy is centred around hiring for talent and not for experience. Therefore, when we recruit we look for the things you can’t teach an individual. When you take this philosophy into your hiring process, you automatically widen your potential pool of candidates. In addition, it also opens you up to finding people that are better suited to the role.
  • Our method has been based on a long-term partnership with the Gallup organisation studying exceptional performance in roles and what makes the best the best. For example, we study what the best people managers do and know that unless you inherently care about your team and want to see people develop then you’re likely to not succeed.
  • Lastly, while we may have a strong talent philosophy and method, it takes a huge amount of organisational discipline to stick to it. If you set your talent bar high, recruiting takes time and it should be hard.

So, does our formula mean the CV is dead? Absolutely! The CV is dead as the key and major driver for a successful application at Stryker. Talent is our key focus, so apply and bring your whole person to the interview.

By using a talent philosophy, developing a method to identify it and then sticking to it in an uncompromising fashion, you open the organisation up to the possibility of:

  • Avnish, a former Physiotherapist now a Robotics Product Specialist
  • Tim, a former Park Ranger now leading a team that builds Operating Theatres
  • Sarah, formerly in the Fashion Industry, now a HR Co-ordinator
  • And myself, a former Youth Worker now running Stryker for Australia and New Zealand.

[/vc_column_text][vc_zigzag][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”2403″ img_size=”full”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_column_text]

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Maurice Ben-Mayor is the President of Stryker South Pacific.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_separator color=”white”][/vc_column][/vc_row]

J&J ON THE HILL

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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]J&J’s goal is to help key decision-makers better understand the company’s business and advance policy discussions around the healthcare landscape.

This year’s event coincided with debate around important reform to the Private Health Insurance sector that will impact on everyday Australian’s with health insurance.

J&J said it was pleased to have met with stakeholders from all sides of politics to advance the company’s arguments on how better to protect consumers and ensure the sustainability and values of Private Health Insurance moving forward.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

A VISION FOR A NEW APPROACH TO HEALTH

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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The CSIRO Future of Health report provides a list of recommendations for improving the health of Australians over the next 15 years, focussed around five central themes: empowering people, addressing health inequity, unlocking the value of digitised data, supporting integrated and precision health solutions, and integrating with a global sector.

CSIRO Chief Executive Dr Larry Marshall said collaboration and coordination were key to securing the health of current and future generations in Australia, and across the globe.

“It’s hard to find an Australian who hasn’t personally benefitted from something we created, including some world-first health innovations like atomic absorption spectroscopy for diagnostics; greyscale imaging for ultrasound, the flu vaccine (Relenza); the Hendra vaccine protecting both people and animals; even the world’s first extended-wear contact lenses,” DR Mashall said.

“As the world is changing faster than ever before, we’re looking to get ahead of these changes by bringing together Team Australia’s world-class expertise, from all sectors, and the life experiences of all Australians to set a bold direction towards a brighter future.”

The report highlighted that despite ranking among the healthiest people in the world. Australians spent an average of 11 year in ill health – the highest among OECD countries.

Clinical care was reported to influence only 20 per cent of a person’s life expectancy and quality of life, with the remaining 80 per cent relying on external factors such as behaviour, social and economic support, and the physical environment.

“As pressure on our healthcare system increases, costs escalate, and healthy choices compete with busier lives, a new approach is needed to ensure the health and wellbeing of Australians,” CSIRO Director of Health & Biosecurity Dr Rob Grenfell said.

The report stated that the cost of managing mental health related illness to be $60 billion annually, with a further $5 billion being spent on managing costs associated with obesity.

Health inequities across a range of social, economic, and cultural measurers were found to costs Australia almost $230 billion a year.

“Unless we shift our approach to healthcare, a rising population and increases in chronic illnesses such as obesity and mental illness, will add further strain to them system,” Dr Grenfell said.

“By shifting to a system focussed on proactive health management and prevention, we have an exciting opportunity to provide quality healthcare that leaves no-one behind.

“How Australia navigates this shift over the next 15 years will significantly impact the health of the population and the success of Australian healthcare organisations both domestically and abroad.”

CSIRO has been continuing to grow its expertise within the health domain and is focussed on research that will help Australians live healthier, longer lives.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

MEDTECH KERRIN RENNIE AWARDS WELCOMING APPLICATIONS FOR 2018

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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Kerrin Rennie was the Managing Director of ConvaTec, a member company of Medical Industry Association of Australia (now MTAA). She was an active and enthusiastic member of the Board and an advocate for greater involvement of women at senior levels in the industry. A trained nurse, Kerrin never lost sight of the central mission of our industry, that of caring for patients.  She was a passionate advocate for the contribution of medical technology in extending life and improving quality of life.  

In recognising the innovative and extraordinary contribution of medical technology in improving health outcomes for Australian patients, the Kerrin Rennie Award is a tribute to Kerrin’s life of service to this industry and to patients.  

Chief Executive Officer of the MTAA Ian Burgess indicated the product must demonstrate evidence of significant contribution to improving patient outcomes by enhancing quality of life, evidence of technical excellence and evidence of innovation.  

“Global advances in medical technology over the past 20 years have resulted in a 56% reduction in hospital stays, 25% decline in disability rates, 16% decline in annual mortality and increased life expectancy of approximately 3.2 years,” Mr Burgess said.  

Last year Medtronic’s Solitaire Platinum device was awarded the 11th Kerrin Rennie Award. The Solitaire Platinum restores the flow of blood to the brain by allowing the clot to be removed and withdrawing it from the body. 

In Australia, there are almost 1,000 cases of stroke each week. Approximately 22% of cases result in death, with two-thirds of survivors disabled. The financial costs of stroke in Australia are estimated at $5 billion per annum with productivity the largest cost component estimated at approximately $3 billion. 

In 2016 MediGroup EBI, Stracos 3D Rib Clip was the winner. The 3D Rib Clip, is a minimally invasive implant that is unique. Flexible to encourage ribs to remodel (heal long term) correctly, and rigid to ensure optimal short-term outcomes such as re-approximation and pain. Using the 3D Rib Clip has been shown to reduce hospital and ICU stay and is associated with reduced complications.  

Last year a record number of applications were received, a testament to the industry that is developing and providing the Australian healthcare system with innovative solutions for patients.  

“At the heart and soul of the medical devices industry are 17,700 dedicated professionals, committed to making a positive difference to patients’ lives through medical technology,” Mr Burgess said.  

“It’s inspiring to be part of the medical technology industry that every day is focused on improving the health and wellbeing of patients.”  

Applications for 2018 Kerrin Rennie Award are currently open, along with the Outstanding Achievement Award and the Women in MedTech Champion Award. 

PulseLine will report on those that make the finals. 

https://www.mtaaevents.org.au/medtech18/kerrin-rennie-award-2018/ [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

CHANGE IN CANBERRA

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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]None more so than in health with the resignation of Greg Hunt as Minister and the outstanding issue of reform to PHI via the Private Health Legislation Amendment Bill.

This Bill will set in place the framework to allow for PHI policies to be categorised as gold, silver, bronze or basic.

The Bill may have a significant impact on the medical device industry as it is may reduce patient reimbursement for medical devices or require consumers to upgrade to more expensive policies, depending upon what policy they hold under the new categorisation.  It has and remains a major issue for the medical device industry.

As of this week it had not been passed by the Senate and now the live issue is that it may not pass into law with the prospect of an early election a very, very real possibility.

If an election is called within the next two weeks, then the Bill will die.  It will either have to be revived by a re-elected Liberal Government under a new Health Minister or a new Labor Government with Catherine King as Health Minister will have to pick up the whole issue of PHI reform from scratch.

As Labor has stated their policy in regard to PHI is to cap PHI increases at 2% for two years while the Productivity Commission conducts a root and branch review of the PHI industry.

Election Timing

Up until this week, the smart money was on a May 2019 election, but the chances of a September or October election are now real.

An early election is problematic for Scott Morrison both in terms of logistics and timing.

In terms of timing, there has to be the passage of a minimum of 33 days from the calling of the Federal election and election day itself.

If an election was called this Monday for instance, then the earliest the election could be held is 29th September and that is AFL Grand Final day.

So Federally, the only realistic dates for an early Federal election are 6 Oct, 13 Oct, 20 Oct and maybe 27 October.

In order to avoid an overlap with the Victorian election which will be held on 24th November the latest an election could be called for say 27th October would be on or around 24th September.

So, there is a three-week window from now until approximately the 24th September for Scott Morrison to call an early Federal election.

The new Prime Minister faces a horror scenario for an October election.  It would see him campaigning during the footy finals season, which will no doubt just annoy a lot of people.

It would also see Victorians going to a Federal and State poll within a couple of months of each other, hardly likely to make the new PM popular.

Remember too, back in 2016 Malcolm Turnbull personally contributed $1.5m to the Liberal Party to help fund the Liberals campaign – well that won’t be happening again.

All in all, the new PM faces the worst of all worlds in regard to an October election.  But he may have no choice but to go to the polls, so the people can sort out the mess that the Government has created.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_zigzag][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”1915″ img_size=”full”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_column_text]

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jody Fassina is the Managing Director of Insight Strategy and has been an strategic adviser to MedTech and pharmaceutical stakeholders.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

DESPITE NIB POSTING $184 MILLION PROFIT ANOTHER 57000 AUSTRALIANS DROP PHI COVER

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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The quarterly Private Health Insurance figures show another 57,512 insured persons dropped out, with the largest decrease in coverage during the quarter coming from people aged 20 and 24, the very group that needs to remain in the system to reduce the risk rating.

Despite this private health insurers collected $23.9 billion in premiums, paid $20.5 billion in benefits and reported net profits after tax of $1.37 billion, 15 per cent higher than two years ago.

NIB chief executive Mark Fitzgibbon said that the “benign” claims environment had resulted in NIB upgrading its full-year profit forecast by 14 per cent. Although private health insurers provided firm commitments that cuts to the Prostheses List benefits would be fully passed on to consumers, NIB’s profit upgrade shows the end result will be a surge in NIB’s profits.

Public frustration with insurers increasing annual premiums by more than double the rate of wage growth comes as a Parliamentary Senate inquiry recommended passing legislation that includes key components of the Minister for Health, Greg Hunt MP’s, wide ranging package of reforms to make private health insurance simpler and more affordable for Australians.

Stakeholders are increasingly voicing concerns around certain components of the reform package. The ambitious timeline for introducing Basic, Bronze, Silver and Gold policies from 1 April 2019 is increasingly problematic.

Spinal surgeon, Dr Matthew Scott-Young, says his field will be one of the hardest-hit by the reforms. Some surgical interventions that consumers commonly rely on such as spinal fusion, would require the highest and presumably most expensive level of cover despite many of these procedures being available today to people holding lower levels of cover.

“People like the reliability and certainty with their insurance and these changes, while in good faith, don’t deliver that,” Dr Scott-Young said.

“The analogy would be that a lady who was pregnant came into hospital to deliver their child through natural birth, but unfortunately there was a complication such that a caesarean section had to be done and they found out they weren’t covered.”

One supporter of the government’s private health insurance reforms has been the Medical Technology Association of Australia (MTAA), but they too have raised concerns around the product categorisation issue of gold, silver, bronze and basic policies. The MTAA CEO, Ian Burgess, believes the proposed categorisations would negatively impact on consumers, leaving them worse off compared to the current system.

“We have expressed to the Health Minister our concerns that insurers will choose to no longer offer these services, like spinal fusion, on the lower categories. This could lead to a further retraction in the number of people with private health insurance or a reduction in the number of people covered by effective health insurance that properly covers them for their needs. In either case there is a risk that further burden would be placed upon public health services for elective surgery and increased waiting lists for common procedures such as joint replacements,” Mr Burgess, said.

“We are discussing with Minister Hunt the need to protect consumers to ensure they are not required to pay higher premiums just to maintain existing levels of insurance coverage as a result of the product categorisations.”[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

PRIVATE HEALTH INSURANCE REFORM – WILL IT DELIVER?

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[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The PHMAC was tasked with developing easy-to-understand categories of health insurance, standard definitions for medical procedures across all insurers for greater transparency and simplified billing, as well as ensuring private health insurance meets the specific needs of consumers living in rural and remote Australia.

While the PHMAC’s measures are expected to be in place by next year’s premium increase, scheduled for 1 April 2019, the questions on everybody’s mind is: will this reform help to deliver lower premium increases or will it only serve to heighten people’s frustration with private health insurance companies?

Consumer advocacy group CHOICE has urged the federal government to scrap its plan to allow health insurance companies to offer discounts to people aged 18 to 29, arguing the move will lead to health funds luring young adults into buying low-value ‘junk policies’.

“While the cost of private health insurance is one of the top concerns that needs to be addressed, cost cannot be looked at in isolation. Discounted private health insurance cover isn’t worth it if you don’t need the cover in the first place,” says CHOICE Campaigns and Policy Team Lead, Katinka Day.

“A cheap policy that adds little or no tangible value is a poor outcome not only for the individual, but also for taxpayers who are subsidising a private system.”

This was reinforced by former chief of the health insurers lobby group and board member of a not for profit health fund Russell Schneider in his submission to the Senate inquiry. He claims that unless 100,000 extra young people buy health insurance, premiums will rise for everyone else to cover the discounts.

The Consumer Health Forum remains concerned the discounts on health insurance premiums for young people under 30 will erode the community-rating principles and further entrench a two-tiered system.

“Such changes to health insurance rules seem designed largely in the health funds’ interests to shore up declining member numbers but go nowhere far enough to respond to the frustration and concerns many consumers have about their health cover,” the CEO of the Consumers Health Forum, Leanne Wells, said.

“The latest statistics showing a significant year-on-year overall fall in health insurance members, particularly the 5.3 per cent drop among those in their 20s, highlights the need for a searching examination of Government assistance and regulation of health insurance.”

The Medical Technology Association of Australia supports the Government’s private health insurance reforms and its intent to address the issues of value, affordability, simplification and transparency of health insurance for Australian consumers.

But its submission focused on concerns around the product categorisation issue of gold, silver, bronze and basic policies. It believes the proposed categorisations would negatively impact on consumers, leaving them worse off compared to the current system.

“The exposure draft released by the Department of Health proposes restricting coverage for some surgical interventions that consumers commonly rely on such as spinal fusion, joint replacements, insulin pumps (for which there is no public hospital alternative), pain therapies such as spinal cord stimulation, hearing implants and intraocular lenses. Under the Department’s proposed model, all of these procedures would require the highest and presumably most expensive level of cover despite many of these procedures being available today to people holding lower levels of cover,” the CEO of the Medical Technology Association of Australia, Ian Burgess, said.

“We have expressed to the Health Minister our concerns that insurers will choose to no longer offer these services on the lower categories. This could lead to a further retraction in the numbers of people with PHI in total, or a reduction in the number of people covered by effective health insurance which covers them for their needs. In either case there is a risk that further burden would be placed upon public health services for elective surgery and increased waiting lists for common procedures such as joint replacements.”

“We are discussing with Minister Hunt the need to protect consumers to ensure they are not required to pay higher premiums just to maintain existing levels of insurance coverage as a result of the product categorisations.”

With these reforms due to come into play from 1 April 2019, at the same time as premium increases and the likelihood of a Federal Election in May 2019 you can be certain health will be a major factor in the campaign.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]