Health Insurance Comparison NZ

Premiums depend on age, plan type (hospital-only vs comprehensive), excess level and any optional everyday cover. Younger members and higher-excess plans pay less; comprehensive cover at older ages costs the most. An adviser can source quotes for your situation.

The NZ public system covers acute and emergency care for residents. Health insurance is mainly used for elective surgery and specialist consultations where the public wait list is long or you want choice of surgeon and timing. Health New Zealand publishes information on planned care and waiting times.

Hospital plans cover surgical procedures, hospital stays and specialist consultations connected to surgery. Everyday plans add cover for GP visits, prescriptions, dental, optical and physiotherapy up to set annual limits. Which you need depends on how you use GP, dental and other everyday care.

In the Southern Cross, AIA and Accuro wordings we checked, pre-existing conditions are excluded unless the insurer accepts them (for example in writing or on your membership certificate). AA Health does not pay claims for pre-existing conditions in the first three years. The insurer asks for your medical history at application, so disclose everything. The table on this page quotes each wording.

Only if you take out an everyday cover module on top of hospital cover. GP visits, prescriptions and standard primary care are not on hospital-only plans. Everyday cover has annual caps — typical limits are a few hundred dollars per category.

Yes, but treatment for that condition will usually be excluded or subject to specific stand-downs. The rest of the policy continues to cover unrelated conditions. Different insurers apply different exclusion language for the same condition — an adviser will know which to approach first.

Affiliated provider claiming means the surgeon or specialist bills your insurer directly; you pay only the excess. Reimbursement means you pay the full bill and claim the cost back. Affiliated provider networks vary by insurer; check whether your preferred specialist is in the network.

Yes. You can step up cover (subject to fresh underwriting on the new benefits) or step down cover at any time. Check your policy wording for how renewal and continuation of cover work.

For individuals, no — premiums are paid from after-tax income. Employer-paid health insurance is treated as a fringe benefit and subject to FBT. Self-employed claimants should check with their accountant.

You can cancel at any time. There is no surrender value. If you re-apply later, you will be re-underwritten at your current age and health, which usually means higher premiums and possibly new exclusions for conditions that have developed since.