How to freeze your health insurance premium hike until 2024 – Sydney Morning Herald
Teachers Health, UniHealth and Nurses & Midwives Health (all part of the same company), have deferred their increases until October 1.
The longest deferral is from HCF – the third-largest fund and the biggest not-for-profit – which has deferred price hikes until November 1.
The reason for the deferrals is that claims have dropped during the pandemic. Elective surgery has been put on hold, and it has become much harder to see health specialists, such as dentists, physios and optometrists.
Health funds promised they would not profit from COVID-19, so they have also been giving some premium money back – in the form of direct credits, premium deferrals or a bit of both.
The pressure remains to give even more back but, meanwhile, you can make the most of this highly original opportunity.
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To maximise your health insurance savings, you could combine the pre-pay trick with one of the premium deferrals, to effectively pay 2021 prices for another 18 months to two years.
The two-step process looks something like this:
Step 1: Join a fund that has deferred the premium hike (as an added bonus, you might be able to get a special offer for taking up a new policy, such as 4-6 weeks free or up to $400 cashback), then:
Step 2: Pre-pay your premium for 12-18 months the day before their deferred 2022 premium increase date. Some funds only allow 12 months to be pre-paid, but some allow 18 months.
That way, you would be paying 2021 prices until as late as April 2024.
If you are already with one of the funds that are deferring premium increases, you can just skip directly to Step 2.
If your health fund has not given you a credit or a pandemic-induced premium deferral yet, maybe it is time to ask them why not?
Advice given in this article is general in nature and is not intended to influence readers’ decisions about investing or financial products. They should always seek their own professional advice that takes into account their own personal circumstances before making any financial decisions.
Joel Gibson is the author of KILL BILLS. Catch his money saving segments on Nine Radio, Today or on Twitter @joelgibson.
