Insurance market in turmoil after court decision

CUSTOMERS are uncertain how health insurance premiums will be charged after a landmark court ruling quashed the legal basis for calculating fees.

The Supreme Court ruled that “risk equalisation” — which ensures that health insurers do not discriminate against customers on the grounds of their age or state of their health — had no sound legal basis.

Discrimination is outlawed under the policy of “community rating”. This is meant to compel insurers to charge all customers equally whether they are elderly, more prone to sickness and costlier to cover or they are young, illness-free and very profitable to cover.