Study finds privately insured patients wait less for surgery

Patients with private supplementary insurance wait an average of eight weeks for surgery, compared with 20 weeks for patients covered by statutory health insurance, a study by the Institute for Advanced Studies has found. ORF reported that the study, commissioned by Upper Austria’s Chamber of Labour, has renewed calls for rules to prevent preferential treatment.

The researchers surveyed 800 people who had undergone surgery in the previous three years. Nearly one in 10 said they had been offered a way to get an earlier appointment, either by going to a surgeon’s private practice or by paying cash directly to shorten the wait.

The survey covered Upper Austria, but study author Thomas Czypionka said earlier research in Styria had found similar results. In Styrian hospitals, waits for hip operations currently range from six to 29 weeks, depending on medical urgency. Czypionka praised the province’s online waiting list, saying it is updated more frequently than in other provinces and gives a more detailed breakdown of operation severity.

The Medical Chamber rejected what it called generalised suspicion. KAGes, the Styrian hospital operator, said surgery appointments are allocated solely according to medical urgency, never in exchange for payment. Its medical director, Johannes Koinig, said the organisation had zero tolerance for such practices and urged anyone with information to report it through its complaints service.

Health councillor Karlheinz Kornhäusl asked publicly funded hospital operators to examine the study. He said any practices that gave patients unfair priority must be stopped and those responsible would face consequences. Kornhäusl also announced plans to expand capacity for cataract operations in Bruck and Graz, with details due to be presented in autumn.