Aussies Urged To Compare Health Insurance To Combat Rising Living Costs

Aussies have recently seen a massive jump in the cost of living (as seen by the consumer price index) which will further negatively impact health insurance premiums and overall health insurance policy affordability.

For many Aussies, private health insurance is fast becoming a luxury item, one which many simply can’t afford for them and their families. Billy Explores says that this shouldn’t be the case and all Aussies should have easy access to the best value health insurance for their needs

What Is Private Health Insurance?

Before we can talk about fighting the increased cost of health insurance in Australia, we need to understand what private health insurance cover actually is. Health insurance protects you against unexpected costs associated with illness or medical treatment. You’ll be covered for all or part of certain medical expenses, depending on the level of cover you choose. You can choose to have both hospital cover and extras cover, or just hospital cover in your policy. You also have the option of individual health insurance cover, or family health insurance cover. Of course, you should always compare health insurance policies to make sure they fit your particular situation.

But, Do You Really Need Private Health Insurance In Australia?

Especially in recent times, a lot of people have been asking, “Do you really need private health insurance in Australia”? We are known globally for our great Medicare public health care system – even Billy Explores uses Medicare funded doctors to give me check ups before I head on my expeditions! Of course, there are both advantages and disadvantages to both systems. It helps to have all the information before you make a decision to compare private health insurance providers, or whether just to stay with the public Medicare system. Thankfully we have managed to pull together a handy guide, ready to help you – you can read it here. 

Doesn’t Medicare Cover Medical Costs?

Australia is very lucky to have a great public health system which is funded under the Medicare system. This means that Aussies can be treated for a lot of healthcare issues. However, some healthcare costs – like a visit to your GP or having an X-done in a hospital – can also be covered or partly covered by Medicare under the public health system. This is of course dependent on your individual circumstances.

Private health insurance is there to cover people for the medical or hospital expenses that Medicare doesn’t cover, or for when a patient chooses to be treated privately (i.e. in a private hospital). Of course, there are both advantages and disadvantages of both systems – so it pays to compare private health insurance vs public system (Medicare) before you make your decision. Of course, the best thing is you are able to compare the various types of health insurance from our panel of providers through Billy Explores!

There are many services that Medicare won’t cover. This is where private health insurance comes in to help make the cost of these services more affordable. For example, a lot of services that come under extras cover will not be covered by Medicare, so it makes sense to have extras cover as well.

Gap Fees Are Also Impacted With Rising Lost of Living

Of course, with the increased cost of inflation, this means that a lot of medical services not covered under Medicare will increase as well – which means gap fees could increase. Billy Explores doesn’t like the sound of that AT ALL! This could be services that are covered under your private health insurance policy and you need to pay a gap fee for, or any services covered under your extras policy. Guess we had better explain to everyday Aussies what Gap Fees actually are!

What Are Gap Fees?

Those pesky things – gap fees! They always pop up when you go to pay the dentist or claim a treatment and you have to pay out of your own pocket more for the service. A gap fee is the out of pocket cost you have to pay when you receive hospital treatment, or any other medical treatment, and that treatment costs more than what you are able to claim back from Medicare or through your private health insurance.

For example, you may visit a dentist who charges $250 for a regular check and clean, however your health fund will only cover $200 of this cost. The $50 out of pocket expense you must pay is called the gap fee.

Fight The Gap Fee By Comparing Health Insurance Providers

There are a couple of ways you can fight the increase in gap fees for private health insurance providers. Firstly, a great idea is to review your health insurance policy and see what providers your health insurance provider has on their books. This way you may be spared an increase in any gap fee payments. Secondly, of course you can compare health insurance providers in Australia through Billy Explores. This is for both private health insurance comparison and extras health insurance comparison. It’s easy to compare health insurance in Australia through Billy Explores’ panel of health insurance providers!

How Can Aussies Compare Health Insurance Providers?

Let’s fight back on the cost of living! Billy Explores urges all Aussies to take this opportunity to compare health insurance providers through Billy Explores and potentially switch their current provider to help reduce any negative impacts on the hip pocket from this increase in living costs. It’s totally free, and all Aussies have to do is spend a couple of minutes by clicking here. By comparing health insurance providers in Australia through Billy Explores and our panel of private health insurance providers, you can save time and effort, and potentially find a better deal on your private health insurance policy for your needs.