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Seniors health insurance
Don’t be left on a public hospital waiting list – get seniors health insurance and skip the long queues.
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I'm Tim, your insurance expert.
Here to help you find the right cover for you!
Step 1/2 - About your cover
Which state do you live in?
QLD
NSW
ACT
VIC
TAS
SA
WA
NT
What's your age?
Depending on your age, you may be eligible for an
aged-based discount. This is used to estimate your
rebate.
Under 65
65 - 69
70 or older
What's your household's taxable income?
This is the combined income you and your spouse earn before tax. It's needed to calculate the correct Australian government rebate.
$93,000 and under
$93,001 to $108,000
$108,001 to $144,000
$144,001 and over
What kind of health insurance do you need?
Combined (Extras + Hospitals)
Extras
Hospital
What level of hospital coverage would you like?
You can change this at any time later.
Legend
Covered
Restricted cover, You may be partially covered for
this category.
Not covered. Optional for insurer to include.
*Prices updated October 2024, in line with Finder's database of health insurance policies. Prices reflect the cheapest available for a single individual with less than $97,000 income and living in Sydney with a $750 excess.
What extras cover do you need? (Optional)
Select as many as you want or move to the next step
Preventative & general dental
Major dental & implants
Optical
Physiotherapy
Podiatry
Non-PBS pharmaceuticals
Chiropractic
Emergency ambulance
Remedial massage
Create a Finder account to get an email copy of your results (optional)
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Why compare with us
You'll pay the same price as going direct - we don't
charge fees
We don't ask for your phone number to see prices
Hang tight - we're fetching policies just for you!
Health insurance helps you access medical care in the private hospital system.
The private system has shorter wait times for surgery, plus a few other nice quality of life benefits.
Everyone is different, but people over 50 are likely to need more complex coverage offered by Silver and Gold policies.
What does seniors health insurance cover?
Hospital
Hospital cover gives access to treatment in a private hospital as a private patient. You can choose your doctor, get your own hospital room (where one is available) and have more flexibility over scheduling procedures. You can choose from 4 levels of hospital cover in Australia: basic, bronze, silver and gold. Which you choose is very much dependant on your specific health needs - bit more on that below.
Extras
Extras insurance helps pay for out-of-hospital treatments which Medicare doesn't usually cover. This can include dental, physiotherapy, chiro and optical. Many policies also cover ambulance fees which the public system does not pay for, unless you live in Queensland or Tasmania. What level of extras plans you pick is a personal choice. Extras area a lot like one of the old coupon books you bought from your kid's school - so long as you use the benefits, they are good value for money.
What kind of hospital policy is right for seniors?
Hospital policies come in four main flavours: basic, bronze, silver and gold. The specific treatments each tier of policy needs to cover is set by law, so it makes it a bit easier to compare apples to apples.
For most seniors, a silver of gold policy is probably going to be the best place to start comparing. This is just because we have more complex health needs as we get older, many of which are only covered by the more comprehensive policies. That's not to say you will need a silver or gold policy though - you gotta make that call for yourself.
Clinical category
Basic
Bronze
Silver
Gold
Rehabilitation
R
R
R
Hospital psychiatric services
R
R
R
Palliative care
R
R
R
Brain and nervous system
Eye (not cataracts)
Ear, nose and throat
Tonsils, adenoids and grommets
Bone, joint and muscle
Joint reconstructions
Kidney and bladder
Male reproductive system
Digestive system
Hernia and appendix
Gastrointestinal endoscopy
Gynaecology
Miscarriage and termination of pregnancy
Chemotherapy, radiotherapy and immunotherapy for cancer
Pain management
Skin
Breast surgery (medically necessary)
Diabetes management (excluding insulin pumps)
Heart and vascular system
Lung and chest
Blood
Back, neck and spine
Plastic and reconstructive surgery (medically necessary)
Dental surgery
Podiatric surgery (provided by a registered podiatric surgeon)
Implantation of hearing devices
Cataracts
Joint replacements
Dialysis for chronic kidney failure
Pregnancy and birth
Assisted reproductive services
Weight loss surgery
Insulin pumps
Pain management with a device
Sleep studies
Why compare health insurance with Finder?
We don't ask for your phone or email to see prices.
With 1 click, you can open your results to nearly every fund in Australia.
You pay the same price as going direct – we charge no fees.
It can cancel out the MLS if you still earn an income.
Emergency ambulances are covered with basic policies.
When you hit 65, you're entitled to a higher rebate.
Cons
It may be too expensive for you – policies start from around $77 per month.
You may be happy to wait longer on the public health system.
If you've never had health insurance, you will have to pay the LHC loading – a 70% additional charge on top of your premiums.
Public vs private waiting times for procedures
Why you can trust Finder's health insurance experts
You pay nothing. Finder is free to use. And you pay the same as going direct. No markups, no hidden fees.
You save time. We spend 100s of hours researching health insurance so you can sort the gold from the junk faster.
You can trust us. We say it like it is. We aren't owned by an insurer and our opinions are our own.
FAQs about seniors health insurance
Yes. You will usually have to serve a 2-month waiting period for most treatments or 12 months for pre-existing conditions. The good news is you won't have to re-serve any waiting periods for items if you held a previous policy that also covered that treatment. However, if the policy you're switching to has higher benefit limits or cover for treatments not covered by your original policy, you will have to serve those waiting periods.
Private health insurance can provide access to more services and treatments, including private hospital rooms, elective surgeries and some treatments not covered by Medicare. It also provides more choices of doctors and hospitals and can help avoid waiting lists for non-urgent procedures.
In general, it is recommended that seniors evaluate their needs, budget and existing coverage through Medicare before deciding to purchase private health insurance and compare various plans and policies offered by different insurance providers before making a final decision.
Once you turn 65, the Australian government officially considers you a senior and you may be eligible for a Commonwealth Seniors Health Card (CSHC). This is a concession card for older Australians that allows you to access cheaper pharmaceuticals and government-funded medical services. The eligibility requirements and benefits you can claim with this card are outlined below:
Eligibility criteria
Benefits
To qualify for the CSHC, you must meet the following criteria:
Be of pension age (65) or older.
Be an Australian resident currently living in Australia.
Don't qualify for a Department of Veterans' Affairs pension.
Don't qualify for any other Department of Human Services payments.
Meet an income test.
CSHC holders can access the following:
Bulk-billed visits to your GP (depending on your doctor).
Other benefits that vary depending on where you live. These may include discounted utilities bills and property rates, cheaper health care costs (including ambulance, dental and eye care) and discounted public transport.
Health insurance is community rated, which means whether you're 18 or 88, you're going to pay the same amount for the same level of cover. On average, a single hospital + extras policy can cost from $67.15 per month to $277.41 per month for a female living in NSW.
All health insurers are required to cover pre-existing conditions. However, you'll generally need to serve a 12-month waiting period starting when you take out a policy before you can submit a claim.
As with any health insurance policy, there are a number of common exclusions. Typically, this includes treatments such as laser eye surgery and specialist appointments outside of the hospital. Another common exclusion is non-medically necessary surgery. Examples include surgical face-lifts or tattoo removal.
Yes and if you're over the age of 65, your private health insurance rebate increases, provided you're not classified as a high-income earner ($151,001 or more for singles and $302,001 and over for families, single parents and couples).
You can claim the rebate either as a premium reduction through your health fund or as a tax offset when you lodge your tax return with the Australian Taxation Office (ATO).
Singles
≤$97,000
$97,001–$113,000
$113,001–$151,000
≥$151,001
Families
≤$194,000
$194,001–$226,000
$226,001–$302,000
≥$302,001
Base tier
Tier 1
Tier 2
Tier 3
Up to 65
24.608%
16.405%
8.202%
0%
Age 65–69
28.710%
20.507%
12.303%
0%
Age 70+
32.812%
24.608%
16.405%
0%
Thresholds above are based on new tiers brought in by the government from 1 July 2024. Source: Private Healthcare Australia.
In most cases, yes. There are some exceptions where seniors won't have to pay the LHC – for example, if you were born on or before 1 July 1934.
If you've never had health insurance before, you will likely have a LHC of 70% applied to your premium, unless you were born before 1 July 1934. This is the maximum LHC loading that can be applied. You'll also need to hold cover for 10 continuous years before the fee is removed. For example, if the normal annual premium for your seniors health insurance policy was $1,800, you'd need to pay an extra $1,260 per year, not counting any rebates you might be eligible for.
Tim Bennett is a Finder insurance & utilities expert. For over 10 years he's reported on news, politics, finance and other topics as a journalist and radio presenter. Tim's roles have included radio news reader and breakfast at the ABC, news producer for SBS and producer for Fairfax Media. Tim regularly appears as a health insurance expert on programs like Sunrise and SBS news, as well as in the Australian, The Daily Telegraph, The Courier Mail and more. See full bio
Tim's expertise
Tim has written 117 Finder guides across topics including:
If you’re over 80 and want good value for money in your health insurance, here’s what’s good, what to avoid and how to maintain good health along the way.
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You pay nothing. Finder is free to use. And you pay the same as going direct. No markups, no hidden fees.
You save time. We spend 100s of hours researching health insurance so you can sort the gold from the junk faster.
You can trust us. We say it like it is. We aren't owned by an insurer and our opinions are our own.
