When people buy health insurance, they often grab a hospital and extras package with the same fund. However, does this produce the best outcomes, in terms of cover, cost and convenience. Let’s explore the pros and cons to see if this statement stands up to the MythDefied test.
Leave your answers below and bust this myth to enter our MythDefied competition.
Yes, surely. The overlap in cases where you can ‘separate’ and the confusion introduced into what is covered far outweighed any perceived savings last time I checked.
I had combined cover with Bupa for over 30 years. This year I decided to change to a not-for-profit provider, because Bupa is pushing us to a US model of health care - which would be disastrous for Australians. Using the Choice Health Insurance Tool I managed to find better value in having my hospital cover through People Care and my extras through St. Luke’s Health (Super Extras).
As value is subjective, based on cost of cover versus your needs, you need to take the time to decide what you want covered and compare that what you have to pay for that cover.
Great answer @mark.jacobs, very sound advice. As part of reviewing health insurance policies each year, CHOICE has often found that “you can often get a better deal by buying the best value extras and hospital insurance from separate funds, so shop around to make sure you’re getting the best deal.”
More info in our health insurance buying guide.
