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How-to guides
Check out our simple how-to guides to assist you in managing your HBF cover online, anytime.
Shoulder replacement is a type of surgery in which a damaged shoulder joint is replaced with an artificial one.
Shoulder replacement is usually recommended to treat severe pain or disability.
Shoulder replacements are usually only considered if lifestyle changes, self-management techniques, medicines and other treatments like physiotherapy are not helping.
Here are some signs that your shoulder may need some kind of treatment:
RelatedGet help managing shoulder pain with extras cover that includes physiotherapy. Physio cover you can feel good about
Most patients leave hospital two to three days after shoulder replacement surgery.
For a few weeks following surgery, you will need to keep your arm in a sling.
Seeing a physiotherapist and doing the recommended rehabilitation exercises can help speed up recovery.
Private health insurance can help with physiotherapy costs too, if you get extras cover that includes physiotherapy.
It’s important to understand how getting your procedure in a public or private hospital differs.
In a public hospital, shoulder replacement surgery is covered by Medicare for eligible residents.
Once you are discharged from hospital, you may still need to pay out-of-pocket for things like medicines and physiotherapy.
In a private hospital, private health insurance can cover some costs of shoulder replacement surgery.
You may have an out-of-pocket cost if you use private hospital cover when you get treatment. You can minimise some of these costs by choosing a hospital and specialist that have agreements with your health insurer.
If you have an excess on your cover, you will have to pay for that out of pocket.
Hospital excess is the amount of money you contribute upfront (out of your own pocket) before you can claim a benefit on hospital treatment.
With HBF hospital cover, you choose a set excess amount when you first get hospital cover.
With HBF, you only pay hospital excess once per person, per calendar year (to a maximum of twice on a family policy) when you’re admitted to hospital.
Are you an HBF member? You can check your excess in myHBF or the HBF App. This is the set amount you’ll pay when you’re admitted.
A hospital out-of-pocket cost is the portion of a hospital bill that you pay from your own pocket for which you won’t be reimbursed – by either health insurance or Medicare.
If you want private health insurance cover for shoulder replacement surgery, look for HBF hospital cover (not extras cover) that includes a category called ‘Joint replacements’.
You need to hold hospital cover that includes Joint replacements for two months before you can claim for shoulder replacement surgery (or 12 months if you need shoulder replacement surgery due to a pre-existing condition such as osteoarthritis).
Find hospital cover for shoulder replacement surgery
Your GP is the one who’ll most likely refer you to a specialist – but they may not recommend the specialist you’d want to perform your surgery. Asking for an open referral can let you:
To find orthopaedic surgeons who work with HBF, just search for ‘orthopaedic surgeon’ in our find a provider tool.
Find a Provider
If you’ve already got a specialist, ask them these questions:
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