Whether you are a public patient in a public hospital or a
patient using private insurance in a private hospital, the
Australian Government ends up contributing around the same amount
of funding, according to a report released today by the Australian
Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW).
The report, Funding sources for admitted patients in
Australian hospitals, 2005-06, was originally commissioned by
the National Health and Hospitals Reform Commission and shows who
pays for the care provided to patients in Australian hospitals.
In particular, it compares the Australian Government's funding
for public patients and privately insured patients, using the
latest and best quality data available at that time.
'In 2005-06, the Australian Government's average contribution
for public patients per episode of care was $1,367', said John
Goss, Principal Economist at the AIHW.
'For patients using their private insurance in private hospitals
the Australian government's average contribution was $1,364. For
privately insured patients overall, whether treated in a private
hospital or in a public hospital as a private patient, the average
contribution by the Australian Government was $1,427 per episode of
care.'
'For all privately insured patients in Australia the average
cost per episode of care was about $3,477, of which 67% was for
hospital charges and 32% for medical charges' Mr Goss said.
'The funding for these charges came from private health
insurance benefits of $2,646, Medical Benefits Schedule rebates of
$512 and out-of-pocket patient spending of $274.'
The Australian Government pays the Medical Benefits Schedule
rebate, and subsidises private health insurance benefits by between
30% and 40% depending on the age of the health insurance fund
member.
The Australian Government bore a greater proportion of the costs
of privately insured patients over the age of 65, than for those
aged under 65 mostly because it pays a higher private health
insurance rebate for older Australians.
The report also shows that within the same diagnosis related
group, public hospitals tend to handle a greater proportion of the
more complex cases. There is also evidence that private hospitals
provide a mix of complementary and competing services to those
provided in public hospitals.
Tuesday 1 December 2009
Further information: Mr John Goss, AIHW, tel.
02 6244 1151 mob. 0402 346 379
For media copies of the report: Publications
Officer, AIHW, tel. (02) 6244 1032.
Funding sources for admitted patients in Australian
hospitals, 2005-06.
Report
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