Choosing the right health insurance for you

Health insurance can be a confusing topic, so knowing what the right type is for you and your needs is important

04 November 2023 8 minute read

A woman sits on her bed using her laptop and phone

Finding the right health insurance is all about making sure it fits your lifestyle and covers you when you need it. Whether you’re young and fit, health conscious, raising a family or just want peace of mind, nib has a range of options.

Different cover options

Our singles, couples and family Hospital plans cover all offer seven levels of coverage – from Basic Accident Hospital Plus right up to Gold Top Hospital. There’s also a range of Extras you can add to your plan to get exactly the right cover for you.

All our Hospital products for singles, couples and families cover you for accidental injury and emergency ambulance cover, and have no annual limits.

Singles health insurance

As well as seven Hospital cover options, singles can choose from a range of Extras. The most popular singles Extra cover is Core Extras, which covers things like general and major dental, optical, ambulance and physiotherapy.

Singles can also access special discounts, including up to 10% off hospital cover premiums for anyone aged 18 to 29, and a 4% discount on most policies if you choose to pay by direct debit.

Couples health insurance

Whether you want peace of mind or comprehensive protection, we offer cover for a range of scenarios for you and your partner.

The most popular couples cover is Bronze Hospital Plus, which covers an array of procedures – from hernia and appendix surgery to joint reconstruction, dental surgery, cancer-related chemotherapy and radiotherapy, and more.

Family health insurance

Whether you know you and your children need extra coverage or just want the basics covered, we can give you peace of mind. Most families go with our Bronze Hospital Plan. Just some of the procedures it covers relate to tonsils, adenoids and grommets treatments; ear, nose and throat conditions; and gynaecology.

All our family plans provide cover if a family member is admitted to hospital. This includes not having to pay an excess for kids under 21.

Extras health insurance

Having Extras health insurance means you can claim for your regular healthcare appointments that aren’t usually covered by Medicare. This could be anything from a dentist check-up, a new pair of glasses or a visit to your physio. It could also include other services, like acupuncture and dietary advice, depending on your level of cover.

We offer a wide variety of cover levels – from Basic Extras to Top Extras – to help you stay healthy and feeling good.

Hospital cover

Why choose Hospital cover? It helps you avoid public hospital waiting lists, pay for private treatment and gives you more choice of when and where you’ll be treated.

Choose from seven levels of cover to help protect you and your family against the unexpected.

Ambulance cover

Having to call an ambulance is stressful enough, without a bill to pay afterwards. Our emergency ambulance cover has only a one-day waiting period and covers 100% of the cost of an ambulance transfer to hospital by a state or territory ambulance service.

Overseas students

We offer visa compliant health insurance for overseas students. From doctors and specialist appointments, to hospital, emergency ambulance and prescription medicine, our coverage can help ease your mind while you’re studying in Australia.

Overseas visitors

If you’re on a working visa, we have three levels of coverage for you to choose from, to help you rest easy in your home away from home. From basic hospital cover through to our highest-level hospital cover and essentials, like dental, optical and physio, there’s something for every visitor.

Other considerations

While we work hard to take the complexity out of health insurance for you, it’s important you take time to consider your options and other factors.

Waiting periods

Waiting periods refer to the time from when you sign up to a new policy, to the time you can actually use the cover or claim money back for out-of-pocket expenses.

Waiting periods vary and apply to both Hospital and Extras cover at different levels. For example, our waiting period for a Hospital accidental injury benefit is one day, whereas cover for pregnancy and birth (obstetrics) is 12 months.

Life stages

It’s important to reassess your health insurance at different parts of your life’s journey. For example, if you’re thinking about starting a family, you might want to consider pregnancy and birth cover, or more comprehensive cover once the kids come along.

And if you find that when you get older, you need to visit hospital and specialists more, you might want to check that your insurance cover is at the right level to meet your needs.