AJRussell

Hey,

Some advice would be hugely appreciated. I have family of four, two kids. We need to get health insurance sorted but I'm not sure where to go. My only huge concern is dentistry as I have heard some real horror stories from the parents at my daughters school of them paying out thousands to have fillings/teeth taken out etc... (yes there kids have some really bad teeth...). Anyone advice of a good health care plan that will remove my worry about those types of bills?

Also, can someone clarify my understanding of Medicare, its like the NHS... but as bad for waiting times? I am under the impression after speaking with a BUPA representative, that Medicare will fix you no matter whats broken, you just might have to wait a little bit longer then if you were a private patient?

Andrew

Swerv-o

For dentitsry, I recommend Dental Plan by Smile (smile.com.au) which is a single yearly payment, and offers money off of the ticket price at participating dentists. There are stacks of participating dentists about, and it is reasonable easy to understand.

You can also combine the service offered by Smile with SOME health fund policies, depending on how they bill, to get even more savings. Have a look at Smile's page for people with insurance: Iinsured-members and you can ascertain which health funds are compatible with Smile.

As for general health 'insurance' - it isn't really insurance in the classical sense of the word - it's just a policy that reduces some of the fees associated with hospitalisation. It in no way covers all of the costs associated with your care, and you should think carefully about whether you choose to use it, as it can end up costing you a large amount in out of pocket expenses.

It also doesn't cover anything that happens outside of a hospital - so GP fees aren't covered, along with specialists consultations in their rooms. These can be quite pricey too.


S

KJCherokee

Yes, the main advantage of having private health insurance is being able to avoid the waiting lists in the public hospitals. Also if as a family you earn more than $168,000 a year you will pay an additional 1% Medicare Levy Surcharge if you don't have private hospital cover.

If you don't want private hospital cover you can just get Extras cover which gives rebates on dental, optical, etc. Check out this government site and Compare the Market

spouse of scouse

Hi Andrew, I'd strongly recommend that you search 'private health cover' on this forum, there's heaps of good info and advice.

I find the whole health care cover thing to be a bit of a nightmare to wade through and I'm an Aussie

Main points: Medicare is nothing like the NHS - with the former there's a substantial co-payment on GP and specialist visits. Dental - no Medicare cover at all unless you're on the bones of your arse, and that's inadequate anyway. Private health insurers have annual limits to what you can claim for dental, eg around $1,500 for major work including crowns and you'd be lucky to get a single crown for that price. Definitely do as suggested above and compare several different private insurers. Can't comment on the 'smile' program but sounds like it's worth a look.

fish.01

Just a note that there is no co-payment for public specialists only private specialists - similar to NHS.

spouse of scouse

Oh! I didn't know that fish, thanks for the clarification.

jad n rich

I would not wait for medicare. 8 months ago urgently needed to see a Neurologist, 'reply' substantial wait times for this clinic.

Been seen and dismissed from my lovely private neurologist meanwhile. My GP thinks the wait on medicare would be years, even though the cause of the condition could have been life threatening.

As for kids dental, Bupa do a policy where kids dental is covered up to 25, no gap. Gap being the curse you get with most medical bills where despite, medicare, private, tax levy etc you still pay some of the bill. Thats general dental, not orthodontics.

Swerv-o

The waiting time to see a specialist publicly can be long though. Usually best to suck up the cost and go private. You usually get just under half back from Medicare.


S