The Tribune

Re: VAT on Private Health Insurance

EDITOR, The Tribune.

I am a senior citizen and pensioner living on fixed income with private health insurance. Despite the exorbitant cost of the insurance, I maintain it because I have pre-existing conditions, my medical bills have steadily been increasing as I age and I do not wish to be a burden on the state.

However, I was dismayed to learn that under the Value Added Tax (VAT) regime, I will be penalised for having health insurance in the following ways:

1) I must now pay VAT on my monthly insurance premiums. Currently, I pay a monthly premium of $1,018. Hence, I must now pay an additional $76.35 which brings my monthly health insurance payment to just under $1,100.

2) My premium is likely to be further increased because many of those currently insured have indicated that they will drop their coverage because of the increased cost. Hence, a smaller pool of insured people could easily result in increased premiums.

3) I am being doubly taxed in that in addition to paying VAT on monthly premiums, I must also pay the tax again on all out of pocket expenses when I receive medical services.

4) I am further disfranchised because I do not receive the VAT exemption extended to public patients who are 65 years and older.

In light of the aforementioned, I am pleading with the government to reconsider the matter and exempt health insurance from VAT.

I also encourage insurance industry stakeholders and those with health insurance to join the effort and likewise lobby the government to correct this matter.

I look forward to a favourable response.

E MILLER

Nassau,

June 30, 2015.