THE way is open for a further meeting between the Department of Health and BUPA to resolve their disagreement over the company's health insurance policies, sources in the Department have told The Irish Times.
However, Departmental sources do not expect any developments for some days, adding that agreement would depend on BUPA coming within the regulations. It was stressed that the Minister for Health, Mr Noonan, was committed "to ensuring that community rating is maintained as in the regulations".
There had been suggestions that the dispute could be resolved if BUPA provided separate application forms for its "Essential Plan", which is community-rated, and its cash plans, which are age-rated. However this was described as "simplistic" by Department sources.
"It's not just merely representational," sources said. "There are issues of substance as well which need to be resolved." Agreement would depend on whether BUPA could see its way to resolving them. "The room is still there to do so."
Meanwhile, the Consumers Association of Ireland (CAI) has said an independent regulator should be appointed to the health insurance industry. The market was regulated by the Minister, also the sole shareholder in the VHI, and this situation was untenable.
Calling for the principle of community rating - the same premium is charged to people of all ages - to be fully preserved, the CAI said confidence in the private health insurance market was being undermined in the dispute between BUPA Ireland and the Minister.
"Consumers are now left in the unenviable position where those who have paid into the VHI system face ever-increasing premiums and an unsure future, while new subscribers to BUPA may be uncertain about the legality of their cover."
The BUPA Ireland package has two elements. One is health insurance cover for hospital treatment, semi-private accommodation and out-patient treatment at a premium of £2.17 a week, including cover for heart by-pass surgery at the Mater Private Hospital and Blackrock Clinic. This, the company argues, is a community rating system in the full sense of the word.
The second element is an optional cash plan in which members would receive a certain amount of money while they are ill. The premium for this cash plan is based on age.
A VHI director, Mr John O'Connor, has claimed that the BUPA scheme could cripple the VHI and result in a huge movement of people over 50 years out of private insurance - which would cost more for them if there was no community rating - and on to the public health service.