*Prices are based on a single person earning less than $93,000 living in Sydney.
Here are some pregnancy health insurance policies from Finder partners that cover pregnancy. All have a 12-month waiting period before you can claim. Prices are based on a single individual with less than $93,000 income and living in Sydney.
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To be covered for child birth in a private hospital, you'll need a Gold tier hospital policy, or a Silver Plus policy that happens to include it. These are the highest hospital tiers, and you'll need to have the policy for at least 12 months to cover the waiting period.
These numbers are updated based on Finder's current health insurance database, which is pulled from the Commonwealth Ombudsman each month. The prices are based on a single person earning less than $93,000 living in Sydney.
We chose to go private for our first born. I appreciate that not everyone will be in the privileged position of being able to afford the high cost (we paid about $10K out-of-pocket), but for us it was worth it as the level of care overall was excellent. We stayed at the hospital until day 6 and there was no rush for us to leave. I felt a lot of support from the midwives, especially during days 3 and 4 which are obviously key days if you're breastfeeding. I really appreciated that my partner could stay by my side the whole week too. As well as having a private room with our own bathroom there were other nice touches, such as great food and it was easy to call for extra provisions at any time, day or night.
For me, the pros of going private included a longer hospital stay – I felt very supported by the nursing staff after giving birth – and continuity of care. I was able to have the same obstetrician throughout the whole pregnancy. But that came at a big cost: Going private cost at least $5K in out-of-pocket expenses for each pregnancy. That's not including the added cost of insurance that will cover pregnancy and birth services. I've heard many public hospitals offer continuity of care now, so if your local hospital has a good maternity wing, it might be worth saving the money and spending it on parental leave instead.
Sarah Megginson,
Head of editorial, Finder
I've no regrets about going public for my maternity care. I particularly liked the GP shared care that I did, rather than having to go to the hospital for all the midwife appointments. From my research, I'd learnt that if any serious complications occur with you or baby, you may well end up being transferred to a public hospital anyway. From a cost point of view, we only had to pay for antenatal classes and some medication. Everything else was free.
Childbirth services on the public system in Australia are paid for by the government via Medicare. If you want private care – either in a private or public hospital – you will have to pay for it yourself. But you can meet some of these costs through a combination of Medicare rebates and private health insurance.
Anything that can't be claimed back on Medicare or on private health cover is known as an out-of-pocket cost.
If you choose to give birth as a public patient at a public hospital, the government pays. Medicare will also cover other expenses throughout your pregnancy. These include midwife appointments, routine ultrasounds, blood tests and immunisations. Plus, you can get up to 3 free counselling sessions if you need emotional support.
With private health insurance in place, you can opt to give birth in a private hospital. In most cases, this will include your own room. You can also choose your own obstetrician, who you'll visit for appointments during your pregnancy and who will deliver your baby. A private plan also has cover for assisted reproductive treatments, such as IVF.
Not everyone needs health insurance for pregnancy. It's important to weigh up your own circumstances before deciding if private health cover is the right choice for your needs. For more on this, read our guide on private versus public childbirth.
| How much "out-of-pocket" were you after your most recent birth (medical expenses only) (e.g. scans, hospital visits, hospital bills)? | |
|---|---|
| $0 | 36% |
| Less than $1,000 | 24% |
| $1,000–$2,000 | 10% |
| $2,000–$5,000 | 17% |
| $5,000–$10,000 | 9% |
| $10,000–$15,000 | 3% |
| $15,000 or more | 2% |
Source: Finder Parenting Report 2021 of 1,033 parents of children under the age of 12
Even with a health insurance policy that covers pregnancy and birth services, there will still be additional expenses* that won't be covered by all health funds**.
Here are the main types of out-of-pocket costs you'll need to consider:
| Service | Description | Approximate cost |
|---|---|---|
| In-hospital excess | You must pay this one-off fee on your admission to, or before you leave, the hospital when you give birth. | $500/$750 |
| Obstetrician's management fee | The end-to-end care you receive from a private obstetrician. This covers hospital fees like delivery expenses and the doctor's insurance. | $2,500-$5,000 |
| Ongoing appointments with your private obstetrician | This covers the regular appointments, including scans and check-ups, that you have with your obstetrician. | $100-150 per visit |
| Paediatrician | If you're a private patient, you have to pay for this specialist to come to the hospital for an appointment. | $150-$250 per visit |
| Private GP costs | The cost of going to a private doctor. In other words, an appointment that's not bulk-billed. | $50-$100 per visit |
| Lactation consultant | To get information and support around preparing for breastfeeding. | $150-$350 – costs vary between antenatal and postnatal. (Some health policies will pay benefits.) |
| Birthing classes | Privately-run antenatal or postnatal classes. | Costs vary a lot – anything from $100-$500. (Some health policies will pay benefits.) |
*You'll be able to claim for some of these costs via Medicare.
**Top policies may let you claim for some of the services listed above.
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This guide looks at assisted reproductive services in general and IVF treatment in particular, including the procedures involved, what the costs are and who picks up the tab.
