Private Health Insurance Flashcards

1
Q

What does private health insurance cover

A

Bills from health care

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2
Q

Discuss the creation of VHI

A

VHI was established in 1957 and required to top 15%of earners in Ireland to pay for health insurance. As a result, they got extra benefits such as being able to skip the queue. Later anybody could join VHI.

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3
Q

What happened with the 3ed non-life directive for insurance?

A

Forced the government to liberalise the health insurance market and new players such as BUPA and Irish Life joined. It also introduced community rating.

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4
Q

What was act established the HIA

A

Health Insurance Act 1994

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5
Q

What is the main reason people buy health insurance?

A

It is faster than the public system

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6
Q

Who is more likely to have health insurance?

A

Educated people with higher incomes

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7
Q

What are the functions of the HIA?

A

Provide licences to new providers
Approve new policies
Approve premium raises
Inform consumers

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8
Q

What is open enrollment

A

Everybody can get health insurance unless they have committed insurance fraud

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9
Q

What are the conditions around pre-existing conditions?

A

A waiting period, usually 5 years applies before you can get cover for that treatment.

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10
Q

Lifetime cover

A

You can not be denied insurance in the future because of your claim history.

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11
Q

Does lifetime cover reset when you switch insurers

A

No

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12
Q

Lifetime community rating

A

When you join the pool, the loading amount you have when you join is what you pay for the rest of your life.

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13
Q

What is lifetime community rating part of?

A

intergenerational solidarity

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14
Q

What is the purpose of lifetime community rating?

A

To encourage younger people to join so they will subsidise the high risk older population.

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15
Q

Risk equalisation

A

Where other insurers subsidise VHI because of the difference in age of there clients.

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16
Q

How is risk equalisation calculated

A

A proportion of the market the insurer has

17
Q

What are the benefits of risk equalisation? (3)

A

Maintain stability in the market
Confidence in VHI
Restrict other companies from cherry-picking clients.

18
Q

When risk equalisation was deemed unconstitutional what replaced it?

A

Health level in 2008

19
Q

What are non-advanced policies?

A

Policies that don’t let you skip the queue or go to private clinics

20
Q

What are the 3 main barriers to entry?

A

High market share of VHI
Perceived lower profits
Underwriting restrictions that make it harder to compete

21
Q

Barriers to competition (3)

A

Psychological cost of moving insurers especially in older people.
Low switching because of VHIs first-mover advantage
Lack of information on different products