Why Is April 1 So Important For Health Insurance?

There are several important times of year for health insurance, including April 1. Check your health cover before April arrives.

important-times-of-year-for-health-insurance">Important times of year for health insurance

There are several important times of year for health insurance:

• April 1: Health insurance premiums increase every year on this date.
• June 30: You may receive a tax benefit if you hold private health insurance and certain conditions apply, when you fill in your annual tax return.
• January 1: Health insurance benefit limits reset with each calendar year, so if you are out of claimable benefits, you can start making claims again.

Before you reach each of these milestones in the year, it is important to compare your health insurance and make sure that you are getting the cover you need, you are not paying too much, and your fund is worth the money.

For now, let’s deal with April!

Why you should compare health insurance before April 1

April 1 is the date every year when health insurance premiums increase across Australia. The benefit of taking out health insurance or changing your cover before April 1 is that you can prepay a year’s worth of cover at today’s prices.

Before your premiums go up this April, assess whether or not you’re paying too much for your health insurance. We’ve outlined the average cost of health insurance here.

Health insurance sign-up promotions are also on now, so it’s time to start comparing and make your choice before March 30 if you want to take advantage of it.

Don’t just go for the cheapest hospital cover policy out there. Cheapest does not always mean best, and in fact, cheapest can really mean nastiest. You should always check what level of cover a policy will really provide.

Canstar can help you search for health insurance to meet your health needs and your budget. Below we have provided a snapshot of the current low monthly premium health insurance policies available with links direct to the lenders website. Please note that this table has been formulated based on a single male seeking hospital cover in NSW. You can try this comparison tool for yourself here.

Compare Health Insurance

There are many reasons why having private health insurance is helpful, including the money saved on the Medicare Levy Surcharge, Lifetime Health Cover, and more.

Keep in mind that a tax benefit from health insurance is not automatic, as it only applies if you meet certain conditions:

• Lifetime Health Cover (LHC) loading only applies if you are aged over 30 years old.
• Medicare Levy Surcharge only applies if you earn more than $90,000/year (as a single) or $180,000/year (as a couple or family).
• Private health insurance rebate (tax rebate) only applies if you earn less than $140,000 (as a single) or $210,000/year (as a couple or family).

Compare Health Insurance