Want the best health insurance? We’ll show you how.
The best health insurance will help cover the costs of everyday treatments like chiro, dental and optical. It will also give you peace of mind when things go wrong like when you're recovering from a broken bone or just need your tonsils removed.
A good tip is to make sure that you're not paying for expensive cover that you may not need such as pregnancy or weight loss surgery.
Your search for the best health insurance starts here
These policies from Finder partners all offer great value for money if you're looking for a hospital + extras health insurance policy. All results are based on a single person living in NSW.
| Fund | Policy | Summary of inclusions | Apply |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Silver Everyday + Top Extras | This Silver hospital cover provides 26 services including heart procedures and plastic and reconstructive surgery. You'll also get a high level of extras including Major Dental, Orthodontics and Natural Therapies. | Go to Site |
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Essentials Flexi Basic Plus | This is a Bronze level of hospital cover, so you'll get 18 treatment categories plus dental surgery. You also get a $800 yearly to spend on extras including dental, physiotherapy plus $200 for optical. | Go to Site |
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Hospital Silver + Mid Extras | This is a silver level of hospital cover with 26 categories included. Extras include a $650 dental limit, $350 back on therapies,$150 back on chiropractic and $200 for optical. | Go to Site |
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Bronze Starter Hospital + Core Extras | This Bronze level health insurance covers 18 treatment categories plus sleep studies. You also get extras including unlimited preventative dental, $250 for optical and $350 for physiotherapy. |
Speak to a health insurance advisor
What you'll get:
- 100% free expert advice
- Pay the same as going direct
- Instant advice if you call 1300 594 882
Working out which is the best policy for you
Finding the best health insurance doesn't have to be hard but it does require you to answer a few questions. You need to work out what's most important to you. Are you:
finder Awards 2017 winners and finalists
Since 2016, finder has been putting on the finder Awards and in 2017 we started awarding the Best health insurance (Comprehensive) and Best health insurance (Value). Below are the winners and finalists for those categories.
Best health insurance (Comprehensive) 2017
"According to finder's algorithm, Bupa's Ultimate Health Cover policy came out on top for comprehensiveness, including its excess/co-payment amount and its range of associated hospitals."
- Winner 2017 Best Health Insurance (Comprehensive): Bupa Ultimate Health Cover
- Finalist 2017 Best Health Insurance (Comprehensive): Peoplecare Health Insurance Premium Hospital + Premium Extras
- Finalist 2017 Best Health Insurance (Comprehensive): Phoenix Health Fund Top Cover
Best health insurance (Value) 2017
"Health Care Insurance's Premier Package presents the best value for money based on policy pricing and features."
- Winner 2017 Best Health Insurance (Value): HealthCare Insurance Premier Package
- Finalists 2017 Best Health Insurance (Value): CUA Health Basic Hospital + Essential Extras
- Finalists 2017 Best Health Insurance (Value): Phoenix Health Fund YoungSavers
Awards selections are based on generally available offers as of 6 October 2017. Learn more about how we chose our winners.
Best for extras coverage
The below table shows the average amount of costs covered by service:
| Fund name (Open membership funds) | Dental [1] | Optical [1] | Physiotherapy | Psychology |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Unity | 46.20% | 64.50% | 62.70% | 34.60% |
| BUPA | 54.60% | 56.40% | 50.10% | 41.50% |
| CDH | 39.90% | 50.10% | 50.00% | 21.70% |
| CUA Health | 51.40% | 61.60% | 40.80% | 35.80% |
| GMHBA | 52.10% | 57.30% | 47.20% | 44.30% |
| GU Corporate | 74.80% | 67.10% | 82.40% | 78.60% |
| HBF | 60.70% | 57.50% | 44.00% | 42.70% |
| HCF | 56.80% | 56.60% | 43.00% | 46.90% |
| HCI | 51.20% | 51.10% | 46.40% | 32.60% |
| health.com.au | 51.50% | 46.00% | 60.60% | 53.00% |
| Health Partners | 59.60% | 54.00% | 58.90% | 34.80% |
| HIF | 49.60% | 59.00% | 37.60% | 35.20% |
| Latrobe | 33.30% | 53.70% | 34.10% | 34.10% |
| MDHF | 62.30% | 55.60% | 44.10% | 25.20% |
| Medibank (includes ahm) | 52.50% | 67.70% | 48.60% | 37.20% |
| onemedifund | 55.20% | 52.10% | 54.20% | 46.00% |
| Peoplecare | 49.40% | 62.40% | 41.20% | 38.80% |
| Phoenix | 57.60% | 61.70% | 51.30% | 42.40% |
| QCH | 53.10% | 58.80% | 48.00% | 47.60% |
| St Lukes | 64.30% | 67.80% | 51.30% | 50.40% |
| Transport Health | 55.30% | 59.30% | 47.10% | 33.90% |
| Westfund | 52.80% | 49.00% | 39.70% | 36.40% |
[1] For some funds, the data does not take account of discounts at some providers or fund Dental / Optical centres.
Source: http://www.ombudsman.gov.au/publications/state-of-the-health-funds-report/2017-state-of-the-health-funds-report
Health insurance vs Medicare
Hospital
Be aware that health funds may require you to visit a hospital in its affiliate network in order to be covered as a private patient. You can check that the hospital you choose to be treated at is covered by your fund prior to admittance.
| Private or public? | What is or isn't covered? |
|---|---|
| Private health insurance |
|
| Medicare |
|
Extras
Medicare will reimburse 100% of the MBS fee for a general practitioner and 85% of the MBS fee for a specialist if you visit a doctor outside a hospital. If your doctor bulk bills, then you won't pay a cent.
| Private or public? | What can you get benefits for? |
|---|---|
| Private health insurance |
|
| Medicare |
|
Ambulance
Emergency ambulance services are provided free by the state governments of Queensland and Tasmania, but in other states only certain people, such as veterans and pensioners, are eligible for free services. You can find ambulance cover in both hospital and extras policies.
| Private or public? | What's covered? |
|---|---|
| Private health insurance |
|
| Medicare |
|
Pharmaceuticals
Under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS), you only pay a portion of the cost of prescription medications. The amount varies depending on the medication up to a standard maximum. However, not all medications are included on the PBS, which is where health insurance comes in.
| Private or public? | How are pharmaceuticals covered? |
|---|---|
| Private health insurance |
|
| Medicare |
|
Ways to get value for money
- Pay your premium in advance to avoid the administration fees associated with monthly payments.
- Opting to pay annually via direct debit can get you a discount with some health funds.
- Pay an excess or co-payment to lower your premium in exchange for paying a lump or daily sum if you go to hospital.
- Join a restricted membership fund if you are eligible, as the premiums are usually lower and benefits to members higher.
- Mix and match your hospital and extras cover, as two different funds may have the best* offers on each.
- If insuring your family, check how long your children can stay covered under your policy.
- To avoid paying a gap, make sure your preferred doctor and hospital both have agreements with your health fund.
Useful info for first-time buyers
Remember, it's important to compare your options and other financial avenues before applying.
Grab a sign up deal for May 2019
ahm Deals
Skip the waits on 2 & 6 months extras. PLUS 1 month free.
When joining hosptial + extras. One month free after your first 60 days.
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Medibank Health Insurance Deals
Get up to one month free + 2 and 6 month waits waived
Offer applies when joining Medibank Gold or Silver hospital & extras cover.
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nib Health Insurance Deal
Skip the waits on 2 & 6 month extras. Plus get a $200 gift card.
Offer applies when joining hospital + extras.
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Popular Health Insurance Deals coupon codes
| Last checked | Code description | Code |
|---|---|---|
| 1 May 2019 | Skip the waits on 2 & 6 months extras. PLUS 1 month free. | 1MF**** |
| 1 May 2019 | Get up to one month free + 2 and 6 month waits waived | ONE**** |
| 17 May 2019 | Skip the waits on 2 & 6 month extras. Plus get a $200 gift card. | ******** |
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*Disclaimer: The products compared on this page are chosen from a range of offers available to us and are not representative of all the products available in the market. There is no perfect order or perfect ranking system for the products we list on our Site, so we provide you with the functionality to self-select, re-order and compare products. The initial display order is influenced by a range of factors including conversion rates, product costs and commercial arrangements, so please don't interpret the listing order as an endorsement or recommendation from us. We're happy to provide you with the tools you need to make better decisions, but we'd like you to make your own decisions and compare and assess products based on your own preferences, circumstances and needs.
Which private health insurance companies offer the best reimbursement of the cost of hearing aids?
Hi Michael,
Thank you for your question.
If you would like to review the cover limits of Australian funds for hearing aids please head over to our health insurance for hearing aids article.
Cheers,
Zubair