Time to read : 2 Minutes

Health Insurer HCF And Healthscope Hospitals End Their Dispute

Anybody who holds a HCF health insurance policy will be breathing a sigh of relief after the insurer resolved its dispute with Healthscope, who run 38 private hospitals across Australia.

• Last December, HCF and Healthscope announced they would be ending their agreement as of February 2023, because they couldn’t agree on hospital treatment costs.

• The new deal means HCF members won’t face much higher out-of-pocket expenses if they’re scheduled for a procedure in a Healthscope hospital.

• Residents in areas such as Sydney’s Northern Beaches – where Healthscope is their nearest hospital – would have been particularly badly affected had the two parties not found a resolution,

The 11th hour agreement between the two sides means HCF members can still receive reduced gap or no-gap fee treatments at Healthscope facilities.

Which hospitals are included in the new deal between HCF and Healthscope?

All Healthscope hospitals are included in the new agreement, so it’s very much a case of ‘as you were’. Here’s a few of the hospitals included:

• NSW: Private hospitals in Campbelltown, Hunter Valley, Newcastle, Sydney Southwest, and the Prince of Wales private hospital, as well as the Northern Beaches, are all covered.

• Queensland private hospitals include Brisbane, Gold Coast and Pine Rivers

• In Victoria, Healthscope facilities include La Trobe, Knox and Northpark private hospitals, as well as The Geelong Clinic, The Melbourne Clinic and The Victoria Clinic.

• There are four Healthscope hospitals in South Australia: Ashford, Flinders, The Memorial Hospital, and the Griffith Rehabilitation Hospital.

• Tasmania covers Hobart Private Hospital and St Helens Private Hospital.

• There’s one hospital apiece in the remaining states and territories:

  • Northern Territory: Darwin Private Hospital

  • Western Australia: Mount Hospital

  • ACT: National Capital Private Hospital

The bottom line:

It’s much needed relief for HCF members who would have had to choose between switching their fund, or cop higher out of pocket expenses or longer journey times to a different clinic.

Be aware: 

Disputes between insurers and private hospital groups do occur from time to time, as funds look to keep costs down for their members and hospitals look to balance their books.

That said, recent disputes, such as HCF and Healthscope, and Bupa and Ramsay Hospitals, have been resolved before the agreements expire. Even if it does go down to the wire.