.svg)
My Account
1800 784 772
Today: 8am to 8pm (AET)
Written by
Francis Taylor
Edited by
Jessie PetterdComparing Health Insurance policies from our range of participating insurers can be as simple as calling us on 13 19 20 and chatting to someone on our friendly team.
But before giving us a call, it can be helpful to get a more thorough understanding of each of our health fund partners, so that you can choose one that suits your budget and needs.
When you compare health funds with us, you’re seeing some of Australia’s most respected and well-established brands. So while you might find one that suits you better than another, they’re all well worth considering.
Once people choose a health fund, they tend to stay put. In some cases this is because they believe they’ll have to re-serve waiting periods for particular services on their hospital policy.
If you were to switch to a higher level of cover with new procedures covered, you'll most likely need to serve a waiting period for the upgraded services.
But generally you don’t have to re-serve if you change health funds at the same, or lower level of cover. In fact, legislation guarantees you don’t have to re-serve waiting periods for services you were covered for with your previous fund if you switch funds for hospital cover. This is called continuity of cover.
So don’t forget to review your current policy to check that your premium is competitive.
Remember, though, to check the policy’s terms and conditions to ensure you won’t need to re-serve waiting periods before you make a change.
A lot of people opt for Hospital cover as well as general treatment (extras) cover for services like dental, physiotherapy, optical, and others.
But remember that health funds will vary on what services they offer and what you’ll get back as rebates.
So make sure your cover meets your needs and is competitively priced. Weigh up the policy’s cost against the services you get and the benefits paid.
For example, some policies set their benefit limits (for each service) on a per person basis, while others apply family benefit limits on each service.
There’s no getting around it; shopping for private health insurance can be tricky business.
But we can help untangle the maze by comparing policy combinations from our range of participating funds and policies and to help you find a suitable choice quickly and simply*.
Health funds generally offer hospital policies with either an excess fee, or co-payments, or sometimes both.
You could save on your premium by agreeing to share the cost of your hospital bill by paying an excess or co-payment.
Generally, the higher the excess or co-payment you’re willing to pay, the lower your premium.
Excess and co-payments explained:An excess fee is an upfront payment you agree to pay before hospital benefits are payable. The excess is generally applied on each admission into hospital for the year, however, it could be capped at a total amount that you would have to pay in a year. A co-payment could be a lesser amount that is paid each day for the services that you receive in hospital. For example, a $50 co-payment for a three day hospital visit would amount to $150. Like an excess fee, the co-payment that you pay in a year may be limited to a set amount. Conditions and limits for co-payments and excesses often vary between funds, so it’s important to check your policy to ensure it will suit you and your family. |
Well, now you’re ready and armed to choose a health insurance provider. But remember that we’re here to help you compare health insurance policy benefits from our range of providers.* To get going, just call us today on 13 19 20.
Sources:
1 ahm - About Us
2 ahm - Travel Insurance
3 ahm - Perks
4 AIA - Who we are
5 AIA - AIA Vitality Benefits
6 Australian Unity - About Us
7 Australian Unity - Rewards and Discounts
8 Bupa - Our Story
9 Bupa - Life Rewards
10 Frank - About Us
11 Frank - Frank Benefits
12 GMHBA - About Us
13 GMHBA - Health Insurance
14 GMHBA - Premium Freeze
15 GMHBA - Telehealth
16 HCF - Our History
17 HCF - Awards
18 Australian Government, Private Health - HCF.
19 HCF - Member Offers and Discounts
20 Latrobe Health - Who We Are
21 Latrobe Health - Latrobe Wins Outstanding Value Awards Back to Back
22 Latrobe Health - Who We Are
23 nib - About Us
24 nib - Member Benefits
25 nib - nib Rewards
26 TUH - Why Choose TUH
27 TUH - Enquire
Save time and effort by comparing a range of Australia's health funds with iSelect*
WE MAKE HEALTH INSURANCE EASY
Questions? Need advice?
