Quinn Healthcare is to increase the cost of its premiums by an average of 12 per cent from next year in a move which will add over €200 annually to the cost of an average premium for a family of four.
It is the second increase imposed by the State’s second largest health insurer this year.
The company blamed the health insurance levy, which it claims will cost it more than €100 million from 2009 to the end of this year, changes to Age Related Tax Relief, the cost of private beds in public hospitals and the higher cost of a range of medical treatments on the price increases.
It said its public hospital spend was up 18 per cent for this year and the cost of private beds in public hospitals had climbed by 21 per cent.
It claimed that in spite of the increases, it remained "the most competitive choice for health insurance" and said it offered consumers "the lowest cost entry point product available in Ireland".
It said prices would change on various dates beginning on January 1st, 2012 and would come into effect for consumers on their policy renewal dates.
The VHI announced a 2 per cent price hike announced earlier this month on top of price hikes of up to 45 per cent it announced in January.
The cost of Quinn Healthcare's Essential Health policy for a single adult rises from €766.99 per annum to €865 while the cost of a the same policy for two adults, two children and as student climbs from to 2149 to €2366, an increase of €217 per year.
Consumers' Association of Ireland chief executive Dermott Jewell described the timing of the announcement as "abhorrent" but said it was unsurprising.
“I don’t think too many people will be shocked but the biggest disappointed for many people will be the fact that Quinn has not deemed it necessary to be more competitive, which is a great pity as they could have hoovered up a great bit of business from their rivals,” he said.
He said the latest price increase would add to the “pile of horrendous increases" that have hit consumers this year.
It could be the final straw for many people and would drive them out of the private health insurance market, he said.
“A lot of people will try to find alternatives but many will have gone to Quinn in recent months as a last resort and will now have run out of options when it comes to affordability," he said.
