Expectant mothers could have their pregnancy managed by a midwife or a GP under a radical proposal to make private maternity care more affordable and to prevent mass closures of Australia’s maternity wards.
After last month refusing to accept the federal government’s pitch to allow families without gold-tier health insurance policies to access private maternity care, Australia’s private health insurers have proposed an alternative plan that would pay midwives, GPs and obstetricians to co-ordinate end-to-end maternity packages spanning a whole pregnancy.
Emma Burridge paid for gold-tier private health insurance while pregnant with daughter Delilah, but she gave birth in the public system when she chose to have her pregnancy co-ordinated by a private midwife instead.Credit: Nick Moir
Private Health Australia, the peak body representing health funds, said the model would mirror what is already standard practice in the public system and it would mean members would pay minimal or no out-of-pocket fees.
“There would be uptake particularly from people struggling with cost of living, but also from that group that have a low-risk pregnancy and don’t want a lot of interventions,” said the group’s chief executive, Dr Rachel David. “Public hospitals are overwhelmed, and the reason they’re overwhelmed is that people simply can’t afford the out-of-pocket fees in private maternity.”
Cost-of-living pressures, maternity service closures and private obstetric fees averaging more than $6000 have forced many families to abandon premium cover. The number of gold-tier policies has dropped by 7 per cent in the past three years, Department of Health and Ageing data shows.
Sydney mother Emma Burridge paid for gold-tier private health insurance while pregnant with her daughter Delilah, but she gave birth in the public system when she chose to have her pregnancy co-ordinated by a private midwife instead.
Burridge, an acupuncturist on Sydney’s northern beaches who often works with pregnant women, said she and many of her clients would consider birthing privately if offered more choice.
“They want to have the flexibility to trust that their care provider is willing to listen to them,” she said. “Yes, cost is a factor, but ... people still aren’t utilising [private health insurance] because the care isn’t meeting their needs.”
Associate Professor Gino Pecoraro, president of the National Association of Specialist Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, said choice was important, but an obstetrician was still required in about 20 per cent of births.
“Only a specialist obstetrician can guarantee that they can be the ones to deliver a woman’s baby safely in absolutely every situation,” Pecoraro said.
Private maternity hospitals across Australia are facing closure due to rising costs, falling demand and a steadily declining birth rate. Last week, Healthscope’s maternity wards in Hobart and Darwin became the latest victims of the squeeze.
Private Health Australia argues their proposal would boost demand for private maternity care and prevent further hospital closures.
Private Hospitals Association chief executive Brett Heffernan said the proposal “seemed reasonable” but would not stop the closure of more private maternity wards because insurers were still not paying hospitals enough for their services.
“That insurers are making historic profits while hospitals are closing services, tells you everything you need to know about the system being out-of-whack,” he said.
Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.