The New Zealand Herald writer Rebecca Savory reports:
“Increasing health insurance premiums are on the increase and it is a major issue, especially for the elderly. At the most extreme, a 73-year-old non-smoking couple with no pre-existing medical conditions could be paying more than $1000 per month in premiums, a 2014 Consumer NZ survey revealed.”
Which is all true, on a nil excess with the addition of a specialists and tests benefit the couple could pay as much as suggested. The article then explains a number of ways in which the couple progressively reduced the cost, down to just $63 a month, and then opted for self-insurance. Which also looks quite sensible.
What I find difficult to understand is that this is described as ‘Crisis of Health Insurance Affordability.’ Presumably we don’t consider health insurance a social necessity, otherwise we would extend the coverage offered in that system.
Click here to read more in this article in NZ Herald.