Should we scrap private health insurance rebates and direct the funding to public hospitals?

If you’re one of the 45% of Australians with private health insurance, chances are the government pays, or has paid, a proportion of your premiums via rebates. Taxpayer spending on these private health insurance rebates is projected to reach A$7.6 billion in 2025. The rebates are a key source of revenue for private hospitals. In 2022–23, private health funds contributed $9.7 billion. This is around 45% of the $21.5 billion spent on private hospital services.