Southern Cross Health latest claims statistics revealed

Southern Cross Health has released its latest half-yearly Pulse report which details how much it has paid out in claims and what procedures members are claiming for.

The group's membership as stayed remarkably static over the over the past two years sitting at 870,263 in September 2018 and rising to 880,089 in March this year. However, the amount paid out per dollar of premium has fallen from 92c in each $1 collected to 86.1c over this two year period.

"In any given period, there are a number of factors at play in terms of how much of every dollar received in premiums is returned to our membership," chief executive Nick Astwick says. "These include the fine balance between offering maximum value for money to our members and ensuring the affordability of premiums."

"At the same time, the cost of private healthcare continues to rise as a result of funding more procedures and the ongoing impact of medical inflation. Meanwhile, the public system is under increasing pressure," he says.