sqat

Hello all.

Please could someone advise me on the rough costs (private v public) of having a baby in Australia?

My husband and I are trying for a baby but since it's taking a very long time (as I'm not always ovulating) we are getting to the stage where we think it may be for the best if we move to Autralia before committing to treatment here. Would I have to repeat any tests such as ultrasound/HSG (X ray of reproductive organs) over there, or would we be able to get the results from the British hospital to take with us?

We would also be interested in finding out about costs associated with blood tests, Clomiphene prescriptions and the cost of care once I become pregnant.

Do most insurers cover pregnancy in their policies, or would we need a special policy? Also, I've read that I would not be covered should I become pregnant within my first 12 months of living in Australia - is this correct, or does it depend on the insurer, or does this just apply to Medicare?

Sorry about the torrent of questions, but we want to know what our options are before we dive into anything.

Any links or personal experiences would be very useful and most appreciated.

Thanks in advance for yopur replies.

Stella340

It might depend on what sort of visa you're coming on, but if you have PR then you'll be entitled to Medicare which you'll have straight away, no waiting periods. If you then have a baby through the public system then you'll have to pay for scans but you can claim it back again through your local Medicare office (standard procedure for Medicare, not just pregnancy related). I've just had a baby through the public system and we were really happy with our care (Gold Coast) and our $0 bill at the end of it

Private on the other hand is a different matter. First you'll have to organise the health insurance with a provider (look at iselect.com.au for a general idea of the different providers and policies) You will then have to sit out a 12 month waiting period for pregnancy, plus they may class it as a 'pre existing condition'? I'm not sure so you'll need to look into that one. We had private health insurance and started out with a Private Obs but it became apparent very quickly that the whole thing was going to cost us a lot of money despite having the insurance. Insurance doesn't cover the whole cost so you will be expected to foot part of the bill yourself. Also bear in mind that delivering in a private hospital will also incur some costs. A friend of ours had insurance and still left with a $3000 bill. And if there are complications during delivery you don't really have a choice to start quibbling about money.

This may not be the case for all private health care providers so maybe someone else can shed some light on it for you. All I know is our health insurance didn't cover everything (it never does) and the potential for additional costs to be added on was huge. The public system were awesome for us and I would 100% recommend them to you. I had a pretty standard pregnancy and delivery but developed gestational diabetes and then had some interventions during delivery. If I'd have stayed in the private system we would have spent a lot of money covering these.

I also think you can get copies of your UK scans etc and bring them over.

Hope this helps a bit? Fingers crossed you get some good news soon

Lucyx

natty

Hi there

As the PP said- if you come in as a PR then you can get medicare and pay nothing for your entire care.

As for fertility treatment- I had to take Clomiphene- to get this I had to see my DR ( $60- you get $30 back from Medicare) to get the referral to a specialist- the specialist charges about $160 per appointment ( you get about $90 back) then you pay extra for scans to check ovaries etc ( another $160 or so- again you get about $90 back) This continues until you fall pregnant- the clomiphene was $30 per cycle. To get pregnant with my first child, it cost me about $2000 all in I would guess. I then went public for the rest of my care- as I had run out of money!

Once pregnant then you pay quite alot if you choose to go private ( even if you have insurance as there are gap fees- generally between $2000 and $3000) but if you go public then its all free ( although you can choose to have your 20 week scan privately- costs about $200)

Hope all this helps

Natty

spartacus

Pelvic floor shot to bits . . . to name just one.

asprilla

Hi stella340, We're in Brisbane, not the gold coast. We also went public, and were very impressed with the level of care.

2 or 3 years ago, we spent some time investigating public v private - and for us, public came out way ahead. In our opinion, the only benefits of a private birth appeared to be (a) you get to choose your own doctor and have a "relationship" with them throughout the pregnancy (but it isn't guaranteed that they will deliver the baby anyway!) and (b) you will get your own room.

For $3,000+, these benefits seemed to be a little too wishy-washy for our liking.

We're definitely not averse to considering private healthcare as a future option, but only if we can be persuaded that there is any tangible benefit.

If there is anyone on here who knows a bit more about the pro's and cons of public v private births, then I'd be really interested to hear your opinions..

cheers

asprilla

nice. How about the missus though, did she pull through ok?

Daydreamer123

If you have private medical, can you still use the public system? Our medical doesnt cover pregnancy for 12 months, so if I fell pregnant during that time, could I go onto the public system or are you not allowed to if you have medical? What happens if you are not covered in the beginning but towards the end you are because it is after the 12 month waiting period? Can you switch to private later.
I sound confused because I am

Stella340

We had private health insurance but after realising all the additional costs (as asprilla points out too) we decided it really wasn't worth going private. So I made an appointment with my GP and it all went from there no problems.

I think I was about 17 weeks pregnant when we switched. They did ask on a form whether you have private health insurance and as we were intending to cancel our policy anyway I ticked no. We have since cancelled so I wasn't fibbing

After the care I received in the public system anyway I had no desire to switch back to private. You might find the same Daydreamer123. A room to yourself might be nice but not worth the $$$ in my opinion.

Daydreamer123

Cool thanks for that. Ours is with my OH's company, so we dont pay for it. We wouldnt want to get rid of it as it doesnt us cost anything, but we are not through the 12 month waiting period, and even then it doesnt cover all the costs, so if it could be covered completely that would be better - if you are allowed to do it. I am not fussed about the difference between private and public care, I am sure they are pretty much the same

natty

it doesnt matter if you have private health insurance- you can still use the public system.

And at my local hospital you still get a private room- double bed ( for partner to stay) and ensuite- you get to stay between 3-5 days aswell- longer sometimes for a c section.

re pros and cons of public vs private- there are pros like choosing your ob and more luxurious rooms etc but the main con is that you are much more likely to end up with intervention when you go private as the obs don't want to get sued if something goes wrong. Public care is much more midwife based so if you want a natural birth then you stand a much better chance by going public.

fish.01

I rang our private insurer re the 12 month waiting period. It was 12 months until the birth of the child, so really only had to wait 3 months before getting pregnant. If it came premmie it didn't matter.