Clalit Health Fund received hundreds of millions of shekels from the German government for the treatment of Holocaust survivors, but charged them a deductible for treatments and medicines
, the Israeli Consumer Council claims today (Wednesday).
In 2010, the late Holocaust survivor Yehudit Beitler filed a class action lawsuit against Clalit Health Fund. Cost, for the treatment of known diseases.
Whitler claimed that Clalit HMO received the funds from the German government, but violated its obligation, and charged the insured a deductible, and is therefore obligated to return them.
In some cases, these amounts amount to tens of thousands of shekels per insured.
In 2013, as part of a compromise settlement, the fund undertook to return the money to the Holocaust survivors who would turn to it.
The Consumer Council opposed the arrangement, arguing that it was problematic and did not guarantee that Holocaust survivors would receive in their lives the refunds to which they were entitled.
Another claim is that the HMO has the ability to locate the survivors and credit them automatically.
In 2016, as part of an amended compromise agreement, it was agreed that there was no need for a request from the survivors themselves and the refund would be made automatically to the secured accounts that Clalit has their details.
After the implementation of the settlement agreement, with the return of over NIS 17 million to group members, it became clear that there is a group of about 4,000 survivors who did not contact Clalit and their eligibility for a refund was not checked at all.
Following an appeal to the National Court, the parties reached a supplementary compromise settlement approved in 2021. Under the settlement, Clalit-insured Holocaust survivors over the age of 75 will be exempt from deductibles for dental care for the rest of their lives.
The value of the benefit was NIS 15 million.
If the total amount of the benefit is less than NIS 12 million, an additional benefit will be given to the group members.
In May 2022, Clalit submitted an implementation report from which it emerged that the actual realization of the benefit so far was only NIS 760,943. As part of the report, Clalit Health Fund did not provide a possible explanation for the low realization rates. The date of the additional benefit to the group members as long as they are alive.
"The Consumer Council anticipated the low realization rates and therefore opposed the granting of a benefit under the provision of real monetary compensation to group members.
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