Health Insurance Quote

There are several factors you should compare when looking at different health insurance options. These include: 

Which type and level of cover should I choose? 

There are four tiers of hospital cover available in Australia. The level of cover these policies offer is regulated by the Australian Government to ensure that consumers can compare apples with apples. Each tier must by law offer cover for set clinical categories. The four tiers are: 

• Basic – offering cover for limited hospital services in just three clinical categories (psychology, rehabilitation and palliative care) 
• Bronze – which often includes the same cover as a basic policy, with additional cover typically offered for up to a further 18 clinical categories  
• Silver – which potentially offers cover for a further 29 clinical categories (or more in some cases) 
• Gold – which offers cover for all clinical categories, and is the highest level of cover available 

The cost of each of these levels of cover increases with the number of clinical categories which are covered by the policy, so it’s worth considering your health cover needs taking into consideration any existing health issues you may have. There are also specific health insurance policy requirements for overseas students and visitors. 

What private health facilities are nearby? 

Hospital cover is designed to assist with the cost of being treated as a private patient, either in a private or public hospital. Aussies living in urban areas may have plenty of choice about which hospital they attend, but those living in rural or remote areas may not have that luxury. The same applies to private practitioners offering treatments available through extras cover: check what’s available in your area and which health funds your preferred providers are aligned with. Think about your health requirements and which treatments and services you really need cover for.  

What excess and co-payments am I comfortable paying? 

When buying a hospital cover policy, you may be able to choose the excess that you’re willing to pay if you do need to make a claim. Excess payments can range from zero up to a maximum of $750 for a singles policy or $1,500 for a family policy, which can impact the cost of your policy. For example, a silver policy with a $750 excess will cost less than a silver policy with a $250 excess.  

The same principle applies to co-payments. If you’re admitted to hospital, your policy may require you to make a co-payment for each day you remain an in-patient. Think about how much you would be prepared to contribute to your hospital treatment (if required) when choosing which insurance policy is right for your personal circumstances.  

What waiting periods may apply to the health insurance cover I buy? 

All health insurance hospital cover policies come with waiting periods, but once you've served one for a particular form of hospital treatment, you probably won’t have to re-serve it if you switch to an equivalent level of insurance with a different provider. In addition, some insurers may offer to waive certain waiting periods for new customers to entice them to take out extras cover, for example. Waiting periods are set at between two and 12 months for hospital cover (depending on the type of treatment) as per Australian Government requirements. However, extras cover waiting periods can be set by individual insurers without any requirements to follow, so they’re especially important to compare.  

What types of out-of-hospital services do I use? 

Extras cover is designed to assist with the cost of paying for services which may not be covered by Medicare, such as physio and dental services. Most insurers offer a choice of levels of extras cover, which broadly offer a higher level of rebates on the cost of your treatments as the price of the policy increases.   

Think about the out-of-hospital health care services you currently use or would like cover for when deciding if extras cover is worth it or which insurance policy is the right one for you. For example, do you currently visit a physio or chiropractor? Do you want cover for massage and dental expenses? If your treatment needs are more extensive, such as if you require hearing aids and more complex dental treatment, you may wish to look at a more expensive extras policy which offers a higher level of cover. 

Are there free treatment options available in my local area? 

Some health insurers have a network of service providers who may offer low-cost or even no-gap treatment to members of a particular health fund. For example, the second-largest health insurer in Australia, BUPA, has its Members First network of over 10,000 healthcare providers who offer cheaper services to BUPA members. Research which health funds your favourite providers are members of to give yourself a clearer idea of where you may be able to make savings on the cost of your treatment. 

Compare costs side-by-side 

The cost of health insurance policies varies widely between providers. Make sure you’re comparing similar policies (such as bronze hospital cover with other bronze policies) and consider their relative cost compared to the level of cover on offer. With extras cover, compare the annual limits on offer (for example, a more expensive extras policy may offer an annual limit of $2,500 for the major dental category, whereas a cheaper policy may only offer $1,000). 

Look at additional services and bonus features on offer 

Some funds provide additional services and benefits to their customers, such as:  

• rewards programs – offering cheap movie tickets or discounts on shopping 
• reduced-cost gym memberships 
• free phone health hotlines where you can speak to a qualified nurse for advice 
• access to free health programs, such as diabetes management to take a holistic approach to managing your condition 
• subsidies for approved weight-management or quit-smoking programs, such as reduced costs for the Weight Watchers or CSIRO healthy eating programs 

Consider which of these additional services you will actually make use of before choosing between different health funds.