Adding a baby to your health insurance

Adding a newborn to your existing health insurance policy

Good news! It's pretty easy to add a baby to your current private hospital policy. You just need to call your health insurer and they'll sort out the details. What's also nice is any waiting periods you've served on your policy will automatically transfer to bub, so long as you register them quickly enough.

There are some important details to know though. How much your premiums will change, as well as how soon you want to register your baby, change depending on your current coverage type. Each option is broken down below.

Single health insurance policies:

If you're on a singles policy, you'll need to upgrade to a single parent policy. This will have higher premiums than your old policy, but it won't be quite as expensive as a family policy would. You typically have just 2 months after birth to change your policy for them to be covered without waiting periods. Sometimes you have even less time - Bupa, for example, only gives you 90 days. Check with your fund.

Couples health insurance policies:

If you and your partner are covered by a couples policy, then you'll need to upgrade to a family policy. This will be slightly more expensive than your current policy, but probably not by a huge amount. You'll need to do this within a month of 2 of your baby's birth to have them covered without waiting periods. The exact deadline changes by fund.

Family and single parent health insurance policies:

If you're already on a family or single parent health insurance policy, then all you need to do is to register your baby on your policy. Your premiums should be largely unaffected. Just get in contact with your health fund within 12 months of your baby's birth in order to have your served waiting periods applied to them as well. This deadline changes between brands - Bupa, for example, allows you to add child dependents at any time and still avoid waiting periods.

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How long can children be covered under my policy?

How long your children can stay on your health insurance policy is up to your health fund. Generally a 'child dependent' can be covered until they're around 20 years old. If your child is a student, or classes as an 'adult dependent' they can sometimes stay on your policy until they are 31 years old, if your fund allows it. Read more about health insurance dependent ages by fund here.

What does private health insurance cover for kids?

Adding your baby to your private hospital insurance policy is generally a good move. If shouldn't increase your premiums by too much, but your baby will be covered as an inpatient at private hospitals in Australia. If you have an extras policy, your baby may also be able to benefit from it too, although more likely when they get a little older. Some extras treatments can be partially covered for children by specific government schemes though - make sure you check what's available in your state.

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Frequently asked questions

• Can I add my baby to my health insurance policy before they are born?

  No, you can't add your baby to your policy until they are born. Once they're born, you can then register their details with your health insurance fund, and upgrade your policy if required. Make sure you do this within the maximum time period allowed to transfer your waiting periods though: 12 months for family and single parent policies, but just 2 months for single and couples policies.

• Will adding a baby to my policy increase my premiums?

  Adding a baby to your policy may increase your premiums, depending on what kind of policy you're currently on. Premiums for family and single parent policies shouldn't change by much with another child added. If you're on a single or couples policy though, you may need to upgrade your cover to a single parent or family policy, which will be more expensive.

• Can I add my baby to my partner's health insurance policy instead of mine?

  Yes, if your partner has a separate health insurance policy to you, then you can add your baby to their policy. Sometimes it will be cheaper for one parent to be on a single parent policy that covers the children, while the other partner has their own singles policy. This is especially useful if one of the couple doesn't need as comprehensive a policy as the other. The most common example would be if one person doesn't need cover for pregnancy and childbirth, but the other one does.

• What happens if I don't have health insurance when my baby is born?

  If you don't have health insurance when your baby is born, you'll need to use Australia's public healthcare system, Medicare, for both you and your baby's healthcare needs. Australia does have one of the better public healthcare systems across the world, so this isn't the end of the world. Learn more about private vs public healthcare here.

• What happens if I miss the deadline to add my baby to my health insurance?

  If you miss the 2 or 12 month deadline to add your newborn to your health insurance, don't fret. You can still add your baby to your cover, but they'll need to serve their own waiting periods.

• Can children have their own health insurance?

  Private health insurance for kids only is pretty rare in Australia. Most stand-alone policies only allow membership to people 16 years and older. More often, kids are covered by their parent or legal guardian's policy.