Why do health insurance premiums change?

Australian health insurance premiums are reviewed every year. Here’s why that happens.

Why do health insurance premiums change?

Each year, all Australian health insurers review their premiums to make sure they can continue to serve their members’ needs.

Factors influencing premium changes can include:

Rising cost of health insurance claims
An increase in chronic health conditions
More complex and costly medical procedures
Inflation

When do health insurance premiums change?

Premiums traditionally change on 1 April each year. But in recent years, some health funds have delayed or even cancelled premium changes to accommodate for socioeconomic factors like the COVID pandemic. HBF was the only major health fund to cancel the 2020 premium increase, when other funds deferred.

If your premium is changing, it will change on 1 April 2023.

At HBF, you can pre-pay before 1 April to 'lock in' the 2022 rate. Get the details about this and more on our Frequently asked questions page.