I was not going to contribute to debate on the Health Insurance Levies Amendment Bill 2024, but I heard so much dribble from members opposite that I am compelled to do so.

Mr Singh MP (interjection): Point of order: The member for Blacktown has used unparliamentary language.

DEPUTY SPEAKER (Ms Hornery MP): The member for Blacktown will resume his seat when another member takes a point of order. He will also think carefully about his language.

Mr Bali MP: There was more dribbling from those opposite than from Messi during a football match. 

I will not restate the arguments made by the Government or rehash those made by Opposition members. But I point out a fact that the Opposition did not cover, which is that 44 of 53 funds—and the health Minister can correct me on this—have agreed to this measure. That leaves nine of the larger funds that have not. Many members have talked about HCF and the massive cost increases that will be imposed if the Government enforces the payment of $892 per night, per public hospital room.

So I just looked up on the list of those health funds to see how much the increase would be. I do not want to advertise particular health funds but HCF's hospital cover right now is $463. If you want silver-plus hospital cover for a single, you pay $40.10 per week. Health Partners has signed up to the $892. Applying the Opposition's logic, this would cause massive rate increases. I do not know what those opposite came up with. We are comparing like for like, silver-plus cover for both of them. I googled it on a comparison of health funds: HCF costs $40.10 per week and Health Partners costs $40.49 per week. The cost to the consumer will be 39¢, and HCF is making a profit of $171.4 million a year versus Health Partners with $29.8 million.

Mr Singh MP (interjection): Why does the Government not negotiate with them directly?

Mr Bali MP: Health Partners has negotiated and delivered. The other side have their EarPods in and are not listening to anything. They are going "la, la, la". Maybe they need to go to an audiologist and start listening...

...That is the clear difference. HCF's silver membership costs $40.10 a week and it pays the Government only $463 for the bed space. Health Partners pays $892, and its premium for the average person who signs up to the same program, Silver Plus, is $40.49—a 39¢ difference. The Opposition wants to back in HCF and all the large providers making hundreds of millions of dollars. The small health funds that are supporting members and still making $29 million a year, which is pretty good money, are doing it at $40.49.

Those opposite have absolutely no idea. They are just coming here to put out their political philosophy of supporting big business to drive down costs. They want to socialise costs and privatise profits. That is all they are interested in. They want to privatise the profits of the large health funds but screw over the small health funds. "Who cares about them?", asks the Opposition. We on our side do. We can demonstrate the 39¢ difference. The big health fund, which generates over $170 million in profit, pays only $463. Every other, smaller health fund that is nimble and there for the members is paying $892, and it is almost the same price—a 39¢ difference in health funds. Those opposite should hang their heads in shame, stop running after large businesses and help the small providers who are delivering for their members.