20,000 families axe kids’ health insurance

More than 20,000 families have cancelled health insurance cover for their children over the past year — the equivalent of 55 cancellations a day.

Figures from independent watchdog the Health Insurance Authority show the major drop off is occurring at the same time as coverage prices continue to surge.

According to the State body, between June 2012 and June this year the number of premiums for children and teens under the age of 17 fell by a massive 20,000.

During the same period prices across Aviva, Glo Health, Laya and VHI rose by an average of 12.1%, repeating long-standing recession-era trends.

Health insurance experts emphasise a reduction in cover for elderly people is more worrying for health service finances than any drop off for younger age groups, due to the number of times and complexity of conditions for which these patients seek treatment.

However, the fact families are cutting cover for children in their droves is also likely to have a damaging impact on the sector in the medium to long term as potential new customers choose to risk living without the protection — unless insurance firms made better deals available.

The latest figures emerged after a major HIA report on Friday said 210 people are cancelling their cover every day — up from 175 a day last year.

The document warned the cancellations are mainly occurring among younger, healthier people who are the cornerstone of health insurance company finances.

Between Apr and June alone, the latest period available, 19,000 policies were cut, while 64,000 people have given up on health insurance coverage over the past 12 months.

The situation follows a recession-era trend that has seen the health insurance market collapse into a crisis which firms are attempting to solve by charging more for coverage — an issue that in turn risks pushing more people to cancel the help.

In 2008 2.3m people in Ireland had some form of health insurance, equating to 50.9% of the population. However, this level had fallen to 2.123m by June last year and currently stands at just 2.059m — 44.9%.

Independent expert Dermot Goode, of www.healthinsurancesavings.ie, has predicted as many as 75,000 people could end their coverage by December, warning the problem for the sector “shows no signs of abating whatsoever”.

On Friday, he told the Irish Examiner: “What this shows is the trend of the younger, healthier people leaving the marketplace.

“The people who are leaving are the young members who are aged between 24 and 35 predominantly, and they are the people who don’t claim.”