Australia's largest health insurer, Medibank, has today written to 9,000 doctors who practise at a Ramsay Health Care hospital to say it is disappointed that negotiations with Ramsay about hospital costs have not yet been resolved.
Medibank Group Executive Provider Networks and Integrated Care, Dr Andrew Wilson, said that Medibank was committed to providing its members with access to private hospital services at reasonable rates.
"Our top priorities for our members are to have a choice of hospitals they can go to and to keep their hospital premiums affordable," he said.
"Medibank contracts more than 450 private hospitals across Australia on behalf of our members. We believe Ramsay Health Care's current request is excessive.
"We will not simply sign a contract with a hospital at any cost. Each year our payments to hospitals grow by more than our premiums increase. In the last 10 years our hospital payments have grown by more than 97 per cent.
"Hospital charges must be affordable, otherwise they are not sustainable and will impact member premiums," Dr Wilson said.
"We are disappointed that we have not yet been able to reach agreement with Ramsay Health Care. We believe our offer is fair and reasonable and hope to reach a positive outcome soon.
"We want to agree a contract with Ramsay Health Care that is in our members' best interests," Dr Wilson said.
"Our aim is for our members to be better off with Medibank and ahm, we don't want them to be inconvenienced. If we don't reach an agreement with Ramsay Health Care, we will do everything possible to support our members who require access to a hospital of their choice," Dr Wilson said.
Members and doctors practicing at Ramsay hospitals are encouraged to contact us:
- ahm members - 134 246, 8am - 8pm EST Monday - Friday
- Medibank members - 1800 034 201, 8am - 8pm EST Monday - Friday
- Doctor hotline - 1300 130 460, 9am - 5pm EST Monday - Friday
Regular updates re these negotiations are available at the Keep Healthcare Affordable website