Single Parent Health Insurance

What is Single Parent health insurance?

Single Parent health insurance is Private Health Insurance designed specifically for families with one adult and one or more dependants. 

It covers you and your dependent children, including adult dependants (depending on your insurer’s definitions). 

In many ways it operates like Family health insurance, which is a policy designed for families with 2 adults and dependants.  

However, there are differences: 

• Two-parent families often pay the same premiums as couples, which means their dependants are often insured for free. 

• Single parents are typically charged extra for their dependants’ health insurance. 

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How much does Single Parent health insurance cost?

For single parents (per month): 

• The cheapest level of Hospital Cover ranges from $64.20 in NT to $154.50 in VIC, QLD and TAS. 

• The lowest Extras Cover ranges from $18.30 in the NT to $29.20 in VIC, QLD and SA. 

• Basic Combined Hospital and Extras Cover ranges from $143.07 in NT up to $211.26 in VIC, QLD and TAS. 

How private health insurers calculate the price of Single Parent health insurance

As a single parent, the cost of your health insurance will likely be higher than for a single person without dependants. 

Some health insurers charge single parents the same premium as 2-parent families for some policies such as those including pregnancy. 

Key factors affecting the cost of Single Parent health insurance

The cost of Single Parent health insurance depends on the tier of Hospital Cover and/or extent of Extras Cover, where you live, excess payable and any co-payments: 

• Tier of Hospital Cover: 
  • Basic Cover 
  • Bronze Cover 
  • Silver Cover 
  • Gold Cover. 

• Extent of Extras Cover 

• Where you live. You pay more if: 
  • you live in a state or territory where there is a higher rate of claims 
  • your state or territory charges more for hospital services. 

• Higher excess: applies if you want to pay this in exchange for a lower premium. 

• Co-payment: applies if you want to make a contribution for every day you are in hospital in exchange for a lower premium. 

Other factors that could impact your premium 

If government incentives and penalties apply to you, these will impact how much you pay for your policy. These are partly determined by: 

• Your age: 
  • if you are 18-29, you may be eligible for the Age-based Discount, which means you can save up to 10% per year on Hospital Cover 
  • if you have not taken out Hospital Cover before the age of 31, you may have to pay the Lifetime Health Cover Loading, which is 2% per year for every year you have not taken out cover.  

• Your income. If your income is $302,000 or less, you may be eligible for the Private Health Insurance Rebate, which gives you a premium reduction on:
  • Hospital Cover 
  • Extras Cover 
  • Ambulance Only Cover. 

If your income is more than $194,000 plus $1,500 for each dependent child per year after the first child, and you do not have Hospital Cover, you may have to pay the Medicare Levy Surcharge. 

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What is the best Single Parent health insurance?

To find the best Single Parent health insurance for your family, ask yourself these 10 questions: 

Q 1:	What are you and your children’s circumstances? What are your health needs?  What are your lifestyle habits?  Does anyone have a pre-existing condition?  Do you want health insurance to reduce your tax bill?  What is your family history of health conditions (and the family history of your children’s co-parent, if relevant)?
Q 2:	How old are you and your dependants? Do you have young children, school-age children or teenage children? Consider whether, if your children develop health issues, you want the choice of having them treated in the private hospital system  Consider whether you want help paying for expenses that Medicare does not cover like dental, optical, speech therapy and orthodontics. Do you have adult children who are dependent on you? The Australian government: allows dependants to remain on your policy until the age of 31, but each insurer may set conditions or their own limits, such as requiring dependants to be single. Ask your insurer for details has removed the age limit for dependants living with disability. Check whether your insurer charges you a loading for covering adult dependants.
Q 3:	What type of health insurance do you and your children need? Hospital Cover Extras Cover  Combined Hospital and Extras Cover Ambulance Only Cover
Q 4:	If you want Hospital Cover, what level of Hospital Cover do you and your children need? Basic Bronze Silver Gold
Q 5:	If you want Extras Cover, what treatments do you and your dependants need and are likely to use? There is no point taking out Extras Cover if you are not going to use it.
Q 6:	For Extras Cover, what are the claim limits, annual limits or lifetime limits on the policy?
Q 7:	What is your budget?  Does the cover you selected fit within your budget? Are you eligible for the Private Health Insurance Rebate? Are you eligible for the Age-based Discount? Will you have to pay the Lifetime Health Cover Loading?
Q 8:	Will you have to pay an excess if you make a claim on Hospital Cover?    How much is the excess? Will you be able to afford the excess if you make a claim?  Look for a policy that does not charge an excess or co-payment if your dependants go to hospital.  Will you have to pay out-of-pocket fees, such as Medical and Hospital Gaps?
Q 9:	Will you have to make a co-payment if you make a claim on your Hospital Cover and, if so, can you afford it?
Q 10:	Check what are the waiting periods before you can make a claim for any policy you are considering.   For example:  If you are thinking of having children, you will need Gold Cover, which has a waiting period of 12 months before you can make a claim. If you want your baby to be covered under your policy when they are born, check with your insurer about their requirements for adding a baby to your policy and to find out whether waiting periods will apply.

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Does Single Parent health insurance cover pregnancy and birth?

Yes. Single Parent health insurance covers pregnancy and birth if you take out Gold Hospital Cover. 

However, it does not cover pregnancy and birth if you take out Basic, Bronze or Silver Cover. 

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Do I need to swap to Single Parent health insurance if I am separating or getting a divorce?

Yes. If you are separating or divorcing from your partner and have Family health insurance, many insurers require you to switch to Single Parent health insurance. 

If you do not switch, your insurer could refuse to pay your claim. 

You must switch policies within the number of days set by your health insurer. When you switch to the same tier of Hospital Cover, you do not need to re-serve your waiting periods provided you have already completed those waiting periods.  

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Can my children get their own health insurance?

Yes. It is possible for a child to take out health insurance but currently only 2 insurers offer child-only policies: Navy Health and Defence Health. These are both restricted insurers which means you must meet certain criteria to be eligible for cover.  

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Can my children stay on my Single Parent policy when they become adults? 

Yes. Private health insurers allow you to include adult dependants on your Single Parent policy, provided they meet certain conditions. Here are the government’s definitions of ‘dependants’ for health insurance purposes: 

• Child dependant – aged up to 18, and single 

• Student dependant – aged 18 to 31, single and enrolled in full-time study 

• Non-student dependant – aged 18 to 31, single and not in full-time study 

• Dependant with a disability – aged 18 and over, and participating in the National Disability Insurance Scheme (or fitting the health insurer’s definition of a dependant with a disability). 

Each insurer may have its own criteria for these categories, so it is important to check. 

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How can I compare Single Parent health insurance?

As a single parent, it is very important to compare prices for health insurance because some insurers charge as much for cover as 2-parent families. 

Use our free Calculator to find the best and cheapest health insurance for you and your dependants.

You can also compare your existing policy against other relevant policies currently in the market. 

We compare every insurer and every policy, with no commercial bias, and guarantee you the cheapest policy. 

You can also calculate whether you: 

• can save on your health insurance because you are eligible for the Private Health Insurance Rebate and/or the Age-based Discount 

• have to pay the Lifetime Health Cover Loading.