01.Introduction
Recommendations for hospital and extras policies
We compare health insurance from all open funds in Australia - that's over 17,000 policies. Then, policies from 20 funds are analysed to come up with recommendations to suit a variety of people in different life stages.
Compared to similar policies, our recommended policies (for family cover) can annually save you as much as:
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$559 to $1529 on top hospital with no excess
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Up to $1320 a year on top extras
For more information on Personal cover see Insurance, or to check out Brendan Mays's thoughts on Australias dental care along with tips to navigate the system, check out his blog on dental services.
Funds included
- AHM
- Australian Unity
- Central West
- CUA
- GMF
- GMHBA
- HBA
- HBF
- HCF
- HIF
- Health Partners
- Latrobe
- MBF
- Medibank Private
- Mutual Community
- NIB
- Peoplecare
- Queensland Country Health Fund
- St Lukes
- Westfund
Combined cover - Are you getting what you pay for?
Combined hospital policies may save you time, but are you trading convenience for quality? CHOICE found that you're better off assessing your hospital and extras cover individually, so you can be sure you're getting the best value for money. For this reason, we did not include recommendations for combined cover in this year's health insurance review. You may be able to access loyalty bonuses, programs and even discounts with combined cover, but overall, it's about getting top-quality health insurance cover. Using our recommendations, you can find the cover you need and save on your premium.
Restricted funds
Restricted funds have performed well in past CHOICE surveys, in both score and satisfaction rating categories. While we have included more open funds in this year's survey, we have not included restricted funds. If you can access a restricted fund, it is well worth considering alongside our recommendations.
What you'll get in this report
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Step-by-step guide We'll guide you through the process of buying insurance and go through all the basics.
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All about the gap We explain gap payments and show you each health fund's gap cover.
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Navigate the traps A practical checklist of questions to ask, conditions to check and fine print to understand.
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Switching checklist Discover how to switch health insurance the easy way.
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How to assess extras insurance Find out if you're getting out what you put in.
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Our health insurance policy recommendations Are assigned to categories to help you understand the different levels of cover.
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