Anger at plan for housewives' health fee

Proposal due to be discussed by the Ministerial Committee on Legislation next week.

By JUDY SIEGEL-ITZKOVICH
housewife 88 (photo credit: )
housewife 88
(photo credit: )
The Treasury's proposal to require the four health funds to charge housewives and other nonsalaried people aged 18 to 67 who do not pay health taxes a monthly fee of NIS 90 for health services has been attacked by civil and social rights organizations. The proposal is due to be discussed by the Ministerial Committee on Legislation next week. Doctors for Human Rights-Israel, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel and the Adva Center issued a joint statement on Thursday attacking the initiative, which the Finance Ministry says will "increase competition" among the public health insurers. The proposal has also been slammed by the Health Ministry and the health funds. Since 1995, all salaried and self-employed residents and their children have been entitled to a basket of health services in exchange for a 4.6 percent tax on monthly income. Others, such as students without income, have paid the National Insurance Institute a minimal amount for coverage. But housewives and unemployed have been exempt, while those with very low wages pay a lower percentage. But the Treasury wants to revert to the pre-1995 situation in which most of these people will be required to pay the health funds NIS 90 a month for services. This, says the proposal's opponents, means that people who do not pay their insurer will probably not get services. In addition, they said in their joint statement, the arrangement will not increase competition, as no health fund can afford to provide such services for less than NIS 77 a month - just NIS 13 below what people will be charged. At present, the health funds cover at their own expense (beyond health taxes distributed by the NII and state subsidies) only 6.45% of the cost of the health basket. But the proposal will raise this to 20% of the cost of the basket. The opponents also maintained that people earning less than NIS 2,800 a month who do not receive income supplements or NII allotments will be forced to pay a higher health tax than what they pay today. Someone who earns NIS 1,000 a month, for example, now pays NIS 372 a year, or 3.1% of his salary. If the proposal becomes is passed by the Knesset as part of the economic arrangements bill, he will pay NIS 1,080 a year. As a fifth of all workers - or 550,000 people - earn less than NIS 2,800 a month, the proposal would hurt a large number of people. The opponents are also concerned that if people do not pay the NIS 90 monthly fee, they will not receive the health services they need; this would especially affect those with no bank account from which the fee can be collected. Barbara Svirsky, the director of the Adva Center, said the Treasury's proposal is a "giant step towards privatization" of the National Health Insurance system.