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Buy now, pay later for elective surgery sparks warnings of financial risk
updated 4
MarMarch 2021 at 1:14am
Consumer groups are warning patients to be fully aware of what they re getting into financially before surgery.
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Elective surgery patients will have the option to delay payments for procedures worth tens of thousands of dollars, as the buy now, pay later industry enters the private health system for the first time in Australia.
Key points:
Patients will be able to borrow up to $10,000 to fund surgery
But financial counsellors are warning of risks
St John of God Health Care s hospitals at Murdoch and Mt Lawley in Perth and St John of God Berwick Hospital in south-east Melbourne are starting a six-month trial with credit lender Openpay.
Patients undergoing elective surgery will have the option of delaying payments for operations under a new arrangement targeting those who have dropped their private health insurance. It has prompted warnings the move could be financially risky.