ICTU criticises Harney’s decision on VHI
The Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) has criticised Tánaiste Mary Harney's decision not to introduce risk equalisation in the Irish health insurance market
Risk equalisation is a process that would have required BUPA to make payments to its state-owned rival, VHI, due to differences in the two companies' customer bases.
VHI's clients are generally older and less profitable than those of BUPA and the Health Insurance Authority has recommended that risk equalisation be implemented because of this.
However, Ms Harney said yesterday that she would not introduce the scheme until the Government had at least started the process of converting VHI to a commercial state body.
ICTU general secretary David Begg said he believed the move could threaten the policy of 'community rating' whereby people pay the same premiums for health insurance policies regardless of age.
"If you have that policy, then clearly you can't but the burden of that entirely on one supplier," he said.
