Dermatologists in New Zealand fear that their patients are opting for less effective treatments for skin cancers, due to insurance policies providing less coverage and charging higher premiums, according to a report by Radio New Zealand (RNZ).
The RNZ report revealed that older patients in particular are opting out of their health policies when they need them the most because the premiums being charged are becoming unaffordable.
President of New Zealand’s Dermatological Society Dr Amy Stanway said, unlike other comparable countries around the world, New Zealand health insurance regulations do not restrict how much a policy can change or how much premiums can rise over someone's lifetime.
Dr Stanway said, "Insurance providers are able to increase premiums each year as they choose to and, at the moment, this has been quite a large increase over the last few years with Southern Cross members such that many of them can't actually continue their policies."
She said skin cancer was increasing with every decade. "Our highest burden would probably be in our 70-90s at the moment, but very common in the 50s, 60s, 70s."
Dr Stanway said the cost cap was often not high enough to cover treatment for multiple skin cancers and many New Zealanders, either due to occupational or lifestyle sun exposure, needed to have skin cancers cut out every year.
The increase in recent years had been significant, driven by the increasing price of healthcare services, members accessing more healthcare, and newer and more complex treatments becoming available.