How will the new categories affect me?

Hospital

All hospital cover now needs to fit into the Gold, Silver, Bronze or Basic categories defined by the Government. That means we’ve also had to rename each of our products to align to this.

We’ve also had to make sure each product includes the treatments and services the Government says need to be included in that category.

If your policy type has transitioned, it will have one of the new categories. If not, it must change to fit either gold, silver, bronze or basic. This means you may lose cover for some services, but gain others. We’ll give you plenty of notice about any changes, and let you know about the cost of your cover as soon as we can – we’re waiting for rebate information from the government to confirm the new premiums. 

Some products will change in April 2019; others by April 2020.

Extras

The government hasn’t asked health funds to fit extras cover into these categories. But if the name of your extras cover includes certain words – like Gold, Silver, Bronze or Basic – it’ll be renamed to prevent confusion.

Why does my category have a ‘Plus’ at the end?

Hospital cover that ends with ‘Plus’ includes at least one treatment or service over and above the minimum requirements that we must include in that category.

For example, joint replacements must only be covered on Gold policies. So by adding this service to a Silver product, it becomes a Silver Plus policy.

If you have questions about the changes, or want to review your cover options, we’re here to help. Call us on 13 13 34, visit a branch or email us.