Young people may cause health fund premiums to rise

The Herald Sun reported that the number of young people enquiring about taking out health insurance in 2016 had dropped nearly 20 per cent compared with the previous year, according to iSelect.It was said that with fewer young people signing up, the pool of people with private health insurance was ageing. Due to the fact that older people have more expensive health costs, this is causing priums to increase, with the report adding that priums are already rising three times the inflation rate.Government data has also reportedly shown that the proportion of the population with health cover has fallen for the first time in years from 47.4 per cent to 47.2 per cent.The decrease follows years of prium rises well over the inflation rate, a public spat between major hospitals and insurers and an aggressive campaign against insurers by the Australian Medical Association.Government policy currently encourages Australians aged over 30 to join a health fund by imposing an extra two per cent penalty prium for each year that they delay joining a fund after this age. Further to this, if they delay until they are 40, they will be required to pay 20 per cent more.