There are 7 major providers for medical insurance in New Zealand. They each have their benefits and merits. Which one is right for you?
What is it?
Health insurance covers the cost of private hospital treatment, which can help avoid public waiting lists. It allows you to have treatment where and when you need it in consultation with your GP. Having health insurance means you can have a greater choice of health service providers offering the service, treatment or procedure that you need.
Why should I consider it?
Your health is one of your biggest assets. Without you, your quality of life can be greatly affected. Health insurance can help lessen the financial strain on your lifestyle if you choose to have private treatment. It can also cut out the waiting time for treatment, which can reduce stress and let you focus on getting better.
Could you afford to pay for private hospital treatment without insurance?
Types of policies
Health insurance policies are broadly divided into two types: basic and comprehensive.
Basic policies usually cover the costs related to hospitalisation in a private
hospital and surgical or medical expenses such as cancer treatment. They also cover associated specialist consultations and diagnostic procedures directly connected with the hospitalisation/surgery. Some insurers also provide a variation on this basic policy, where cover is for a list of specific procedures only.
Comprehensive policies include all the cover provided by the basic policy as well as primary care costs such as doctor's visits, prescription charges and, depending on the insurance policy, additional costs such as optometrist and physiotherapy bills.
Additional OptionsSome health insurers allow you to choose from a number of extra options to add to the base policy, enabling you to customise a policy that best suits you and your lifestyle.
- A specialist option, which covers costs related to specialist consulations and some diagnostic procedures, after referral by a GP and which do not result in hospitalisation.
- A trauma/critical illness option, which gives a one-off lump sum payment when you're facing a specific serious health condition for the first time.
- A dental and optical option
- A GP option
- An option to cover other health practitioners, e.g. osteopath, chiropractor or acupuncturist
Pharmac/Non Pharmac (Medsafe) All insurers cover the subsidised medication provided through Pharmac (which can be restricting). There are some providers however that cover the entire Medsafe range (not just restricted to Pharmac subsidised range) of medication. This can be a valuable benefit to anyone whereby the specialist may prefer to prescribe a more expensive treatment plan; of which the insurer may meet the costs of. Knowing the difference between
Pharmac and Medsafe is a vital conversation to have when looking at the options provided by Health Insurance companies.
About premiumsHealth insurance premiums are set using a risk rating system based on age and sometimes other factors such as gender, whether you are a smoker or non-smoker, or have a healthy and active lifestyle. People of a similar age, gender and risk are often grouped together and pay the same premiums. This system accurately reflects the true health costs of each group. It also means premiums increase as you age, because older people tend to claim more, which in turn costs the insurer more to pay their claims.
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