Government provides free health insurance to everyone in Australia, yet about 43% of Australian population goes for private health insurance. It is obvious that such a huge number of people, even though they have to pay a high premium, opt for private insurance because of its numerous advantages. In fact, high premiums have not deterred people from going for private health insurance, because it gives them quicker treatment, a vast choice of hospitals and doctors to select for treatment and also covers for some extra procedures that are not covered by government health insurance, but which come bundled in the packages offered by private health insurance companies.
The public healthcare system in Australia, in contrast is free and comprehensive, excluding covers for some ‘extras’. Yet, there is a general preference for private health insurance by people. But, there are a number of issues that one needs to carefully look at while opting to go private. The private health insurance does not come cheap; you have to pay a huge premium to be covered by the private health insurance system, even though the rates are much lower in comparison to what a private health insurance would cost you in most other countries. Like all insurance companies in any field, private health insurance companies have some tricky exclusions, restrictions, limitations, co-payments, excesses, waiting periods, and gaps in addition to some out of pocket expenses that apply to new members. There are often high expenses involved for certain procedures such as heart operations, hip replacements, to name just a few.
While selecting a private health insurance, you must give a thought to your specific medical needs before you decide whether you need to pay the high premium for private health insurance or just stick to the public healthcare system that anyway covers you for most procedures without charging you anything. Young people because of their age rarely fall sick and hence, they do not often require a visit to hospital for treatment, and many would not prefer paying high premium on private health care. Yet, there are many who in this age group who want insurance for the unexpected. Private hospitals are generally preferred by most pregnant women because they want to get their baby delivered by obstetrician in private hospitals rather than by midwives in public hospital. Then there are families with small kids which go for private insurance because kids are more likely to go to hospital for treatment and private hospitals provide better facilities.
Often a private health insurance is of no use if you have been referred to a specialist in a public hospital by the General Practitioners who are the gatekeepers to the health care system in Australia. The reason is that the public hospitals would provide you treatment based on your needs rather than the healthy insurance cover that you might have taken. But it may help you jump the queue for a surgery or an operation, or if you want a particular specialist to take care of you during your treatment.