As you've probably already heard, premiums for private health insurance jump by up to 4.8% as of April 1, 2017.

Whilst there's not much anyone can do about this, you can reduce the cost to yourself by adjusting how much you are paying for your insurance, in general.

Our financial planners at Calder Wealth Management are not able to offer advice on private health insurance. But what we can do is recommend that you use this month to review your specific policy. It's crucial to determine that you are getting your money's worth and that your policy covers everything you believe it does.

Comparing insurance policies is extremely challenging. Each company offers different levels of cover; it's almost impossible to compare apples and oranges.

So what we've done is compile a list of things for you to consider when reviewing your private health insurance.

Who Is Covered?

Do you have singles or family cover?

If you are paying for family cover, make sure you know exactly who is covered under the policy. To be covered under the same policy, some insurers require people to be related by birth or to be in a relationship. Generally, most will only cover dependants (an unmarried person and 18 years of age) while some may consider those 18-24 years as dependants if they are living at home and studying as full-time students.

What Is Covered?

Australia's Medicare provides health insurance for citizens and permanent residents, but private health insurance allows for more options which aren’t covered by Medicare. Private insurance may also help you avoid the long waiting lists common to the public system. You can choose to be covered for just private hospital cover, or extras (also known as ancillary) cover or both. Look through your policy terms and conditions to see if there are any limits or restrictions that apply to you. You don't want to be unexpectedly stuck with paying high out-of-pocket expenses.

Lowering Your Premiums

Take a good look at your coverage to determine that it will provide what you really need.

For example, if you are a female, why pay for obstetrics services if you’re not planning to have children?

Do you need cover for a hip replacement at age 23?

Talk with your insurer to see if your premium would decrease if you excluded unnecessary services.

How about ambulance cover? It’s important to check on this as Medicare does not cover the cost of an ambulance or other emergency services.

Consider your excess (this is the amount of money you agree to pay upfront for a hospital stay). Increasing your excess will reduce the cost of your premiums but it means that you will need to pay more out of pocket for a hospital stay.

You could put your excess amount away on the side. With some policies, the excess is smaller but you may need to pay it each hospital visit in the same year. With others, you may only have to pay it once per family. Some insurers don’t apply the excess for children’s hospital stays, so try to anticipate how likely someone under your policy would need a hospital visit each year.

Making The Most Of Your Cover

Many insurers offer other benefits in the way of discounts on other products or services if you are a member with them. For example, discounts on gym memberships, travel insurance, movie tickets, and health and well-being products. Get more bang for your buck by finding out what your provider offers.

The best way to reduce the cost of your health insurance premium is to make sure that you do your due diligence to avoid any nasty surprises. Do careful research before changing providers. You often get what you pay for so it's crucial to look into the coverage and benefits of a plan before signing up.

Click here for more information on private health insurance, including a comparison calculator. 

What's Next?

At Calder Wealth Management, we're highly experienced with all things relating to personal insurance. Contact us or call 08 8373 3333 to arrange a free, no obligation appointment.

Written by, Marisa Maiolo, Life Insurance Specialist at Calder Wealth Management.