Do I need health insurance if I'm young and healthy?

Benefits of Private Health Insurance for Young People

1. Be prepared for the unexpected

Life has a habit of taking unpredicted twists and turns. Sports injuries, freak accidents, or an unexpected medical condition can happen to anyone without warning. 

To understand why this is important, you need to understand what “elective surgery” (“planned surgery”) is. While the word “elective” makes it sound like a nice-to-have but that’s not always the case. Basically, elective surgery is any surgery that’s not considered an emergency. Even if it feels like an emergency to you because you’re in pain or discomfort, or it’s affecting your work or study, and even if it’s urgent and medically necessary, it’s still considered planned surgery.

In the public system, there are usually fairly long wait times for elective surgery.

On the other hand, private hospital insurance usually means shorter wait times for in-hospital planned surgery. This means you could possibly have your treatment sooner.¹ And as another great benefit, you can also choose your doctor and hospital.

Extras cover can also work with your hospital cover to help you continue to put your health first with recovery services like physio² and remedial massage.³

If you’re happy to take your chances with the public system, then consider taking out unlimited emergency ambulance cover to help. Ambulance fees can be expensive, with NSW residents charged an emergency call-out fee of $445 plus an additional $4.02 per kilometre for the whole trip.⁴ And in Victoria, it’ll cost $1,396 for an emergency ambulance callout in metropolitan areas.⁵

With Medibank's Unlimited Emergency Ambulance cover, you can get peace of mind knowing if you unexpectedly need to be rushed to hospital for an emergency.

2. Look after your health AND save money

Need new prescription glasses or due for a dental check-up? Health insurance isn’t just for when you’re sick: it also helps you stay healthy. 

Your body is an incredible piece of machinery, so it needs regular maintenance to keep it running in tip-top condition. Many Extras services aren't generally covered by Medicare, so without Extras cover, you might have to pay the full cost out of your own pocket. 

Extras cover could help with costs of day-to-day health services like dental, physio, remedial massage, and optical. In fact, with eligible Medibank extras, you can get 100% back on up to two dental check-up and cleans every year at a Members’ Choice Advantage dentist, including x-rays on top of your annual limits. The national average cost of a dental check-up and clean at a Members’ Choice Advantage dentist is $247.50 and if you visit twice a year, you could get around $495 back in value.⁼

All Medibank members with Extras enjoy access to our Members’ Choice Advantage network providers – one of the largest service provider networks in Australia, adhering to strict quality standards for safety and care, along with capped pricing and discounts for all-round better value.^& Who knew looking after your health could also help you look after your wallet?

3. Get support for your mental health

If there’s one group that truly understands the importance of looking after our mental health, it’s younger Australians. According to the National Study of Mental Health and Wellbeing about 38.8% of those aged 16-24 experience a 12-month mental health disorder.⁶

That’s why we focus on providing support that can help you prioritise your mental health. 

Some of the ways you could use your extras cover for mental health support: 

• No waiting periods for psychology or counselling consultations for members with eligible Extras or combined cover.^$
• Mental health consultations – With eligible Medibank extras, you can receive benefits towards face to face or telehealth psychology and counselling consultations with a registered psychologist or Medibank recognised counsellor. How much you get back will depend on your level of Extras cover and annual limit.^$

Other ways you can have support at your fingertips: 

• Better Minds app provides wellbeing checks, skills training and one-on-one coaching with health professionals at no extra cost for members over the age of 18 with eligible hospital cover.^@
• 24/7 Medibank Mental Health Support – Medibank health insurance members can chat with a mental health professional over the phone or online at no extra cost.^>

4. Avoid extra costs

Did you know that getting private hospital insurance by the time you’re 31 could save you money in the long run? To encourage people to take out private hospital cover and maintain it, the Australian government introduced the Lifetime Health Cover loading (LHC). 

Put simply, if you don't have private hospital cover by July 1st following your 31st birthday, and choose to take it out later in life, you'll have to pay a 2% higher premium for every year you delay getting it.

For example, if you wait until you're 41 to get private hospital cover, you could pay 20% more than someone who took out the cover at 31.

This loading applies for 10 continuous years of having cover. Once you've paid the loading for 10 years, it stops, and you'll pay the standard rate.

5. You might get a tax break

To encourage Australians to take out private hospital cover and relieve stress on the public system, the government applies an additional levy for those without private hospital cover, depending on your annual income. This is known as the Medicare Levy Surcharge.

You could save money on tax with hospital cover If you earn more than $97k as a single or $194k as a family, couple or single parent. You could be paying an additional tax surcharge of 1% (up to 1.5%) of your income if you or any of your dependents don’t hold an appropriate level of hospital cover for the full financial year.⁺ 

You can use our Medicare Levy Surcharge Calculator to find out how much extra tax you could be paying without hospital cover.

Busting myths about private health insurance

We get that you might feel like there are more urgent things to put your money towards instead of health insurance. But some of the reasons people give for not getting health insurance are myths – and worth busting!

Here are some of the most common myths, and some real facts.

Is there health cover out there that's right for you?

Everyone is different. That’s why we offer health cover options for a range of health needs and budgets – from Unlimited Emergency Ambulance cover right up to combined hospital and extras cover. Check out the Medibank for Young Adults page to find one that’s right for you.

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