Private health insurance - extra and hospitals with different insurers

saintmagician0 on 27/05/2016 - 21:25

Has anyone done this?

So a recent deal prompted me to compare private health insurance quotes. I realized I really liked the deal I got for hospital cover with my current insurer, but the extras cover is not so great.

I know someone can buy just hospital cover (with no extras), or extras cover (with no hospital cover), but anyone here have both but with different insurers?

Like is it allowed? Are my two health funds going to let me do that? Is it going to create a lot of extra head ache come tax time?

Health & Beauty

Comments

  • airzone on 27/05/2016 - 21:57
    +1

    Why not? Medicare exemption is on hospital cover, not extras.

  • poboy on 27/05/2016 - 23:08
    +1

    Some health insurers offer bundled deals, meaning you have to take the hospital and extras. If you like the deal your insurer has on hospital, feel free to go to another insurer for extras. It's smart. Extras has no bearing on your tax - that's strictly your hospital policy.

  • nivag01 on 28/05/2016 - 08:14
    +1

    I've did it for a couple of years, had extras for with Medibank and hospital cover with Bupa. Will eventually moved every thing to Medibank

  • jimbobaus on 28/05/2016 - 09:32
    +1

    As for the headache at tax time.. wont matter ONLY hospital cover is required for medicare levy exemption etc.

    • brainactive on 21/06/2016 - 22:01

      So I'm assuming it's also ok to switch insurers for hospital only cover in order to be surcharge exempt, is that correct?

      • jimbobaus on 22/06/2016 - 10:42

        Yes. If you buy hospital cover only you will be exempt from the surcharge.

  • CezR on 28/05/2016 - 09:59
    +1

    Hi, yes i've done it before. Also, you may want to consider 'One Big Switch'. I just got $100(single cover) refund when I moved to HCF in March 2016. Check this website, I can see it's now $200 refund :-(

    https://www.onebigswitch.com.au/campaigns/big-health-insurance-switch-2016/health_insurance_switching_plans?utf8=✓&do_query=true&health_insurance_switching_plan_query%5Bfamily_type%5D=single&health_insurance_switching_plan_query%5Bstate%5D=NSW&health_insurance_switching_plan_query%5Bsegment_type%5D=0&x=128&y=44

    Good luck

  • CezR on 28/05/2016 - 10:02

    Hi, yes i've done it before. Also, you may want to consider 'One Big Switch'. I just got $100(single cover) refund when I moved to HCF in March 2016. Check this website, I can see it's now $200 refund

    https://www.onebigswitch.com.au/campaigns/big-health-insurance-switch-2016/health_insurance_switching_plans?utf8=✓&do_query=true&health_insurance_switching_plan_query%5Bfamily_type%5D=single&health_insurance_switching_plan_query%5Bstate%5D=NSW&health_insurance_switching_plan_query%5Bsegment_type%5D=0&x=128&y=44Hi,

  • saintmagician0 on 28/05/2016 - 12:52

    Thanks for all the comments guys. I didn't realize PHI for tax purposes was only hospital and not hospital + extras.

    • Ozbargainlyf on 28/05/2016 - 14:29
      +1

      yeh mate. Get hospital to not pay tax, but cut your extras. Working in a field that offers "extras", its not worth it. Even if you go to the members first practices etc, extras is a complete waste of money. You're much better off saving the $10-20 or so a week that you would've paid extras with into a savings account and "claiming" it from there to get 100% rebate effectively. Really, dental is the big one and outside of emergency dental care, you roughly know it will only be $200-500.

      • saintmagician0 on 28/05/2016 - 21:48

        I get a lot of value out of extras. It's worthwhile for lots of people.

        • Ozbargainlyf on 29/05/2016 - 08:01
          +1

          Yeh sure, but how do you think insurance companies make money? They do so by receiving more premiums than their annual payouts. If everyone was like you @saintmagician0, then there wouldn't be profitable private health insurance company. The number of people I see daily that say "i haven't used it for x number of years" and just paying premiums and not receiving benefits far outweigh the people that take full advantage of their yearly limits each subcategory of dental, optical, physio

        • saintmagician0 on 29/05/2016 - 10:51

          @I like bacon: Oh I completely agree. Although I think better advice would be to 'go do your maths' and not just 'extras is not worthwhile'.

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