Levy to ‘force’ health cost rise

THE EU Commission has given the green light to an alternative risk equalisation scheme in the health insurance sector that one company claims will increase the cost of a family premium by €426 per annum.

The scheme has been described as very similar to the previous risk equalisation initiative that was annulled by the Supreme Court.

Insurers cannot risk-rate their policies, which in turn can result in imbalances on the market if their risk profiles are different.