The reason most people keep their private health insurance is the same as why they maintain their
car or home insurance: it’s about insuring something important – your health – against the unexpected.
With hospital insurance, your health fund helps cover the cost of treatment in a private hospital.
But what about the public hospital system? Yes, it is free, but there is a trade-off.
In the public system, unless it’s an emergency, you’ll be placed on a waiting list. On the other
hand, going to a private hospital using your hospital insurance means you can skip that public
waiting list, getting treatment at a time of your choosing. With hospital insurance you can also
choose your specialist and gain access to a private room, so long as one is available.
Extras insurance helps cover the cost of your everyday healthcare services. It covers outpatient
services that Medicare generally doesn’t cover – that’s things like dental, optical and chiro.
Both the public and private healthcare systems have their benefits. Ultimately, deciding on whether
private health insurance is worth it depends on what’s important to you.