If you’re a single parent or about to become one, it’s important to have health cover that suits your circumstances. Whether you’re expecting a baby on your own, switching plans after a life change or simply want to rethink your cover, single parent health insurance helps ensure you and your dependants are covered for the care you need – without the higher cost of a family plan.
What is single parent health insurance and how does it work?
Single parent health insurance is a type of private health insurance designed to cover families with one adult and dependent children. It can help pay for private hospital treatment and services that aren’t generally covered by Medicare.
Because the policy includes one parent rather than two, premiums are generally lower than a two-parent family policy. However, the cover options themselves are the same, with a range of hospital and extras policies available depending on the type of insurance you choose.
Who can be covered on a single parent policy?
In private health insurance, “dependant” doesn’t just mean a child under 18.
As a standard rule, children are covered until they turn 21, but many allow dependants to remain on their family policy until 31 or 32, depending on their circumstances:
- Full-time students can usually stay on the policy at no extra cost, provided they are not married or living with a partner.
- Dependants between the ages of 21 and 31/32 who are not studying full-time may still be allowed to remain on the policy if they are not married or living with a partner – though this comes at an additional cost and is often limited to certain higher-level plans.
In many cases, children can stay on your policy even if they don’t live at home, as long as they meet the insurer’s dependency requirements.
What does single parent health insurance cover?
When you take out single parent health insurance, you can choose from hospital cover, extras cover or a combined policy, depending on your needs.
Hospital cover
Hospital cover helps pay for treatment when you’re admitted to hospital as a private patient. There are four tiers to choose from – Basic, Bronze, Silver and Gold – each offering a higher level of cover.
- Basic: covers accidents and emergency ambulance services (if not free in your state).
- Bronze: includes common procedures such as tonsil, adenoid, grommet, ear, nose and throat treatments, appendix and digestive system issues.
- Silver: adds further cover such as dental surgery in hospital and hearing device implantation.
- Gold: offers the most comprehensive cover, including pregnancy and birth services as well as assisted reproductive treatments.
Extras cover
Extras cover helps with out-of-hospital services that aren’t usually covered by Medicare. There are three levels to choose from – low, medium and high – covering many services that can be especially useful for families with children. This can include:
- Dental check-ups and major dental
- Optical care (glasses and contact lenses)
- Physiotherapy
- Speech therapy
- Hearing aids
- Dietetics
- Orthodontics (braces)
Combined hospital and extras cover
You can also bundle hospital and extras into one policy. Many insurers allow you to mix and match levels of cover – for example, higher hospital cover with basic extras or the other way around – so you’re not locked into matching tiers.
Choosing the right level of cover
When choosing a policy, it’s important to think about both your current needs and what you may need in future. If you’re planning another child, for example, you’ll need hospital cover that includes pregnancy and birth – and you’ll need to serve waiting periods before claiming.
Waiting periods apply to most policies, especially for major services like pregnancy or orthodontics, which usually have waiting periods of 12 months, so it pays to plan ahead so you’re covered when you need it.
Single parent health insurance cost
Single parent cover is more expensive than a singles policy but cheaper than a family policy, sitting somewhere between the two. Here’s how single parent cover stacks up against singles and family policies, based on the cheapest fortnightly payments available through Savvy in February 2026:
| Type of cover | Single parent | Single | Family |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hospital only | $58 | $36 | $72 |
| Extras only | $13 | $8 | $16 |
| Hospital + extras | $74 | $45 | $90 |
| Source: Compare Club, February 2026 Prices based on 35-year-old adults living in Sydney on a base-tier income. |
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If you get divorced or separate from your partner, you won’t need to both take out single parent cover. One parent can hold a single parent policy for the children, while the other has a singles policy. This ensures the kids stay covered without unnecessarily doubling up on cover or paying extra.
The actual cost of your single parent policy will depend on the type and tier of cover you choose, as well as your insurer.
The tables below show the cheapest fortnightly premiums available through Savvy for each type and tier as of February 2026:
Hospital
| Tier | Price |
|---|---|
| Basic | $58 |
| Bronze | $68 |
| Silver | $88 |
| Source: Compare Club, February 2026 Prices are for a 35-year-old adult living in Sydney on a base-tier income, selecting a $750 hospital excess. |
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Extras
| Tier | Price (fortnightly) |
|---|---|
| Low | $13 |
| Medium | $27 |
| High | $47 |
| Source: Compare Club, February 2026 Prices are for a 35-year-old adult living in Sydney on a base-tier income. |
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Bundling hospital and extras lets you combine both types of cover into a single policy with one premium. Prices can vary widely depending on the levels chosen. These are the cheapest and most expensive fortnightly premiums for combined cover available through Savvy as of February 2025:
| Combined plan | Price (fortnightly) |
|---|---|
| Cheapest | $74 |
| Most expensive | $297 |
| Source: Compare Club, February 2026 Prices are for a 35-year-old adult living in Sydney on a base-tier income. A $750 hospital excess is selected for the cheapest plan and a $250 excess is selected for the most expensive. |
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Does the number of dependants I have affect my premiums?
No, the price of your single parent health insurance will stay the same whether you have one child or multiple on your policy, and adding a child will not change your premiums.
How do I compare health insurance policies for single parents?
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Choose the right level of cover
You don’t have to go for the top-tier plan to get the coverage your family needs. Often a lower- or mid-tier plan will cover the essentials at a lower cost, helping you avoid paying for services you won’t use.
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Check how long your children stay covered
Understand the age limits and any extra costs for keeping older children on the plan. Some policies allow children to remain on cover until they’re 32 under certain conditions – but this is not standard on all plans.
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Consider annual limits
Don’t just check the limit per person – look at the total annual limit too. With multiple people on the policy, a low overall limit can reduce the actual value of your cover per person.
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Factor in waiting periods
If you switch plans or upgrade your cover, you may need to serve new waiting periods for certain services. Waiting periods can vary between providers, and in some cases may even be waived for certain extras, so it’s important to check before choosing a policy.
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Look for extra benefits for children
Perks like no-gap dental, health programs or no excess for young dependants can make a big difference, offering additional support for your family and helping you save on healthcare costs.
