Huge increase in private health insurance! Methods to lower prices

The recent increase in private health insurance premiums is putting a strain on policyholders. Average premiums rose by 100 percent last month. This increase occurred 56 points above the annual general inflation rate of 47 percent. Health inflation was measured at 53 percent, but the premium increase has exceeded this rate by 50 points as well.

Policyholders are complaining about this increase, which is far above inflation. While private health insurance offers an important safeguard against high healthcare costs, many people are finding it difficult to access this service due to rising premiums.

There are two main types of health insurance in Turkey:

1. Private health insurance, which is valid in all hospitals and covers all healthcare expenses.

2. Supplementary health insurance (TSS), which covers the difference fees in private hospitals contracted with the Social Security Institution (SGK).

In total, 7.4 million people have private health insurance. Of this, 4.7 million are covered by supplementary health insurance, and 2.7 million are covered by private health insurance policies. However, in a population of 85 million in Turkey, this figure indicates a quite low rate of insured individuals.

HOW TO LOWER PRIVATE HEALTH INSURANCE PRICES?

Hürriyet columnist Noyan Doğan, in his article titled "The prescription for lowering prices in private health insurance," provided tips on how to reduce rising costs. Certain changes that can be made to policies to lower insurance premiums are noteworthy.

Most private health insurance plans cover A Plus hospitals. However, removing a few hospitals within this scope from the policy allows for a significant reduction in premiums.

By removing just one hospital from their policy, an insured person's insurance cost dropped from 160 thousand liras to 100 thousand liras.

However, when evaluating whether an insurance premium is high, it is necessary to keep in mind that even the simplest surgery today starts at 250 thousand liras.