With a bit of planning, you’ll always be covered

The best private health cover helps you live large. Whether you have Hospital or Extras (hopefully both), your cover should move with you throughout your life, supporting you through life’s big events. And that means it’ll need to be finetuned every once in a while, to make sure it’s doing its job.

Does your health cover match your needs and lifestyle?

Life is a journey – things change. So, it’s important to take the time to review your cover so it keeps up with your changing lifestyle and healthcare requirements and to be sure you’re covered for everything you need – and not for the things you don’t.

You should review your health cover many times throughout your life to keep yourself and those you love protected. We’ve put together this quick guide to making sure your health cover changes when life does.

Young and single

When you’re young and single, you may not think you need health insurance at all. But, accidents happen, so it’s always good to have the peace of mind that hospital cover provides. The young adult years are also when you establish good health habits. Extras Cover helps maintain good general health and wellbeing – like all those trips to the dentist and optometrist. Access to benefits for physio, chiro and remedial massage come in handy, too.

And then there were two … (or three …)

When you become part of a couple, you’ll think again about your health cover.

Whether you’re an active, outdoors couple or prefer to spend time together in the gym, Extras benefits like physio and chiro (as well as dental and optical) are a must.

You may also want to claim those gym memberships – so a higher level of Extras cover may be best for you.

While you may be in good health, it makes sense to keep Hospital cover – just to be sure you’re in good hands if the unexpected happens.

Hospital cover also safeguards you against long waiting periods in the public system, helping get you back on your feet quicker if you need it.

And, when you start thinking about starting a family, you’ll want to make sure you’re covered for pregnancy (and maybe IVF).

Even if you’re not part of a couple, you might want to start a family. Taking the time to make sure your new little family is protected and that you’re covered for the care you need will give you a good start.

Putting your new family first

A new life means new responsibility. Once a child (or children) arrive, you’ll be keen to protect them with quality care.

You’ll need cover for common childhood conditions (tonsils, adenoids, grommets).

And, establishing the regular cycle of dental and optical check-ups in the early years will help you get the kids on track from the start.

Benefits like Speech Pathology, Audiology and maybe even Occupational Therapy will help you make it through those busy years of childhood.

All families get older

Again, as the kids get older, things will change. Make sure your cover grows with your family and their healthcare needs.

The teenage years often need some tender loving care. Dental and optical visits will become routine and you may also need to consider orthodontics.

Good general health is important for busy families, and everyone will be able to access benefits for gym membership, psychology and dietetics if you select the right level of cover.

Your own young adults

Kids stay at home longer these days. Many study, many get their first jobs – but for the most part they’ll live in the family home for longer.

We were one of the first private health insurers to offer cover to adult dependants – whether they’re students or working – right up until they turn 31.

Full-time students can remain covered for free and working kids can remain covered for an additional premium (less than the amount they’d pay for an equivalent single person cover).

You’ll need a Family Extension policy to keep adult dependants on your cover.

With more ‘grown ups’ on your cover you’ll need a good Extras cover to make sure everyone has access to the services they need. These could range from dental and optical, chiro and physio as well as gym memberships.

Alternative therapies, like acupuncture, remedial massage and health aids may also come into the picture. Your Hospital cover will need to support an adult family to provide you with real peace of mind.

And then there were two (or three) …

The ‘empty nest’ may feel a long way off, but it will be here before you know it.

The kids (probably with your expert help) have moved onto their own health cover and you’re back to life on your own or as a couple.

Still, you’re older now so quality cover will help you take on whatever life throws at you. It’s later in life when we see the most demand for new hips and knees, so maintaining hospital cover for joint replacements is wise. And, it’ll help you dodge those public hospital waiting lists.

Extras remain important, depending on your lifestyle. Staying on top of your general health and wellbeing with chiro, physio and alternative therapies will help you stay at your best. And, you’ll more than likely need those optical benefits.

We’re here for you every step of the way

Sometimes you’ll need to make a change to ensure you have the right level of cover. It’s important to know that if you change to a higher level of cover, you may need to wait two to 12 months before you can claim on any new services.

But with a bit of planning, you should always be covered.

Feeling unsure? Talk to our friendly team and they’ll help you to figure it out.

We want to hear from you whenever you have a query, if your circumstances change, or if you just want to review your existing cover to make sure it’s still the right one for you.