While Australia’s Medicare program provides universal public health insurance and private health insurance is not mandatory, approximately 13.6 million Australians carry private health insurance. Private health funds give people more options for treatment and care and often provide coverage for additional services, such as dental care, chiropractic treatment, optical services and private hospital care. Usually, you receive treatment faster with private insurance than with Medicare.
When choosing private health insurance, you have the option to select either a for-profit or a not-for-profit health insurance provider. In the for-profit model, the insurance fund has an obligation to deliver its profits to the fund’s shareholders. The not-for-profit model does not have this same obligation. Here are four benefits of selecting a nonprofit fund for your private health insurance coverage.
1. A Not-for-Profit Health Insurance Fund Prioritizes You
For-profit insurers report to their shareholders ahead of their members. One of their primary responsibilities is to ensure they make a profit to pass on to their shareholders. Nonprofit funds do not have shareholders. Any profit they turn goes back into the company and is passed on to their members. Without an obligation to a controlling group of investors, not-for-profit funds can prioritize their members, providing more benefits with lower premiums.
2. Nonprofit Funds Offer Competitive Benefits
Many Australians purchase private health insurance for the additional flexibility, choice, and coverage it provides. With private insurance, you get access to more services from public and private health care facilities. You may think that not-for-profit health insurance providers offer fewer benefits than for-profit insurers, but they often have similar benefits. Frequently, they provide better benefits with more services because they can direct more money into improving services for their members.
3. Not-for-Profit Insurers May Have Lower Premiums
For-profit insurers establish premiums based on the services and benefits they offer and the need to turn a profit. Nonprofit insurance funds use their premiums to pay overhead costs and salaries, as well as to cover services their members use. Since they aren’t concerned with turning a profit, they may have lower premiums than a for-profit company. You can get quotes from a nonprofit insurer to determine its rates and what kinds of services and benefits it offers.
4. Not-for-Profit Health Insurance Companies May Send You Higher Rebates
Operational costs for insurers can vary from month to month and year to year. Providers must balance their incoming premiums against their outgoing costs. The company may use surplus revenue to lower the cost of premiums and offer more services. However, they may also choose to give the extra money back to their members in the form of a rebate, giving you a little extra cash in your pocket.
Get a Quote for Not-for-Profit Health Insurance
There are numerous benefits associated with not-for-profit health insurance. At Health Partners, we take pride in providing our members with excellent service and confusion-free coverage. Our members are our top priority, and we’ve been providing health care to South Australia for more than 80 years. Contact us today to learn more about membership and the benefits we offer.
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The information contained here is of a general nature and does not take into account your personal medical situation. The information is not a substitute for independent professional medical advice and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease or used for therapeutic purposes. Should you require specific medical information, please seek advice from your healthcare practitioner. Health Partners does not accept any liability for any injury, loss or damage incurred by use of or reliance on the information provided.
While we have prepared the information carefully, we can’t guarantee that it is accurate, complete or up-to-date. And while we may mention goods or services provided by others, we aren’t specifically endorsing them and can’t accept responsibility for them.
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Health Partners is committed to providing quality and affordable health care, and we value our members and our obligation to protect your privacy. As part of our responsibility in protecting your privacy, from time to time we review our policies to ensure we are meeting our obligations. We have recently made some updates to our Privacy Policy. Please click here to view the Health Partners Privacy Policy.
© Copyright Health Partners. 2024 All Rights Reserved.
Health Partners is committed to providing quality and affordable health care, and we value our members and our obligation to protect your privacy. As part of our responsibility in protecting your privacy, from time to time we review our policies to ensure we are meeting our obligations. We have recently made some updates to our Privacy Policy. Please click here to view the Health Partners Privacy Policy.