HEALTH INSURANCE
A NATIONAL SCHEME POSSIBLE DEVELOPMENT A GENERAL QUESTIONNAIRE (From Our Parliamentary Reporter) WELLINGTON, Oct. 6. The possible development of the Government's policy with regard to national health insurance is indicated by a general questionnaire which has been drawn up for submission to persons and organisations likely to be interested' in or affected by the operation of such a scheme. The questionnaire, it is understood, was approved this morning by the general committee investigating the question, and copies of the questionnaire were despatched to-day. The questionnaire, which invited comment on specific points covering all aspects of any proposed scheme, is to be given wide circulation. It will be distributed to doctors, dentists, nurses, insurance companies, friendly societies, actuaries, hospital boards and other professional individuals and organisations. An elaboration of the views on any question is invited, and it is indicated that any phases of the subject not covered in the questionnaire may be the subject of separate statements. It is also intended to arrange for the taking of oral evidence according to necessity as revealed by the replies received to the questionnaire. It is expected, that after the replies have been received on the stipulated closing date of November 30, and after or"al evidence has been taken by a specially selected committee, an effort will be made to collect the most useful views expressed on the various aspects of the scheme and to use them as a foundation on which the Government's actual legislative proposals will be built for submission to Parliament next year. The questionnaire, a copy of which was released for publication this evening by the Minister of Health (Mr P. Fraser), is subdivided under a number of main headings. The recipients of the questionnaire are .invited to state whether or not it 'should be contributory, whether any classes of persons should be exempt from contributions and if so, whether minimum and maximum income limits should be applied in determining exemptions. With regard to beneficiaries the points submitted are whether the benefits should extend to the dependents of insured, and if so who are to be regarded as coming within that category. The question is also raised whether any class of person, such as old-age pensioners and unemployed, should be entitled to benefits without having contributed. Another query is whether an insured person should have his rights to the benefits modified in respect of any period during which he is in receipt of payments under the Workers Compensation Act. Uniier the heading of benefits it is asked whether any of the following should be excluded: —General medical practitioner services, specialist and consultant services, laboratory aids, medicines and appliances, dental treatment, ophthalmic treatment and optical appliances, orthopaedic appliances, non-institutional nursing and massage services, maternity services, hospital and sanatorium treatment and transport of patients. Sickness benefit and disablement benefit contracts and third parties are dealt with under a separate heading. Assuming that the relative benefits are included in the scheme information is sought as to the basis of payment for medical services classified as general practitioner, specialist and consultant, the basis of arrangement for the supply of medicines and appliances, the basis of payment for ophth&lmic treatment and optical appliances and for non-institutional nursing massage and maternity services. Opinions are also invited as to the basis of payment from the proposed fund for treatment in public hospitals and sanatoria on the one hand and private hospitals on the other, and there is a further request to define the basis of payment for ambulance and other transport services. A long list of questions is submitted with a bearing on administration. It is asked whether the administration of cash benefits, such as sickness or disablement benefit, should be separated from the administration of benefits in kind, such as medical and hospital benefits. In the matter of the central administration of the scheme the points raised are whether there should be a specially constituted central body with executive powers, with a request for an outline of its general constitution, or alternatively whether national health insurance administration should be made a function of existing department or departments enlarged for the purpose. Other points refer to the advisibility or not of having local administration undertaken by specially constituted local insurance authorities, the extent to which friendly societies and other bodies which are already administering voluntary insurance schemes should be entrusted with responsibility under the general scheme, the provision which should be made for consultation between the administrative bodies and the committees representative of those supplying services under the scheme, and the principal method or methods of payment and collection of income. The final clause asks whether income from all sources should be allocated to separate funds for certain benefits or groups of benefits, and whether each such fund or the national health insurance fund as a whole should be kept actuarily sound.
During the past few weeks there have been some published estimates regarding the possible cost of a national health insurance scheme. The range of the questionnaire itself suggests that no reasonable estimate of cost can be made until the scope of the proposed scheme is finally determined.
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Bibliographic details
Otago Daily Times, Issue 23005, 7 October 1936, Page 9
Word Count
855HEALTH INSURANCE Otago Daily Times, Issue 23005, 7 October 1936, Page 9
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