Avoid rookie errors and find the best cover the first time from the start

You’ve probably heard something along the lines of “health insurance is complicated”, but it doesn’t need to be, you just need to focus on the stuff that matters to you.
While there’s definitely important information you need at your fingertips before you take out cover, it’s not as complex or scary as it sounds.

To avoid any rookie errors and ensure you get the right level of cover for you, we’ve put together a quick cheat sheet for choosing your new policy. Here are 5 tips to get you on your way.

1. Types of health insurance

There are 3 types of cover to choose from: hospital cover, extras cover, or a policy that combines both, usually called ‘hospital and extras’.

If you’re admitted in hospital, the hospital cover can help you pay the cost of your stay as a private patient. This includes payments for your accommodation, theatre fees and medical treatment you receive as an in-patient.

Extras cover (sometimes called ‘ancillary cover’ or ‘general treatment cover’) will provide you a range of benefits for services outside hospital, such as dental, physio, chiro and optical. You’ll find that these services are generally not covered by Medicare Benefits.

Combined cover is simply a policy that includes both hospital and extras cover. Sometimes your funds will offer “packages” while others will allow you to mix and match your hospital and extras.

2. You get what you pay for

The best trick to save money and unnecessary stress is to understand what you need from your health insurance now and in the future, then find a cover that meets those needs. When you’re starting out, many people ask their older and more experienced friends and family for advice, but really you want to be speaking to an independent customer service professional who understands the facts and figures.

The classic rookie error is when people automatically assume their parents’ health fund and cover is right for them. Nowadays, there are great comparison services out there, whose sole purpose is to help you find the best value solution for you from hundreds of policies across multiple funds.

3. Come prepared and think about your needs before price

Chances are if you’re reading this, you found it by doing your own research and not just believing a headline or ad. Once you’ve decided what you need from your health insurance, you then need to really understand how to get the best value and whether you’re taking out health insurance for the right reasons.

We live in a world where the internet is a brilliant place to research, but what makes Compare Health Insurance Online unique is that we not only provide a great online comparison tool, we also have a great reputation for helping people over the phone.

The best way to ensure you’re getting the best combination of price and benefits is to compare policies and shop around. To save valuable time, you can use our online comparison service to do most of the work for you.

Or give us a call on 1300 73 96 92, and we’ll find the best health cover for you from our panel of health funds.