How We Can Help

Choosing a policy

HICA isn't a health fund. We're an independently owned consulting broker which offers objective advice on the range of health cover options available to you. This means you get the guidance you need to make an informed decision when it comes to purchasing private health insurance, whether it's your first time, or you're looking to review and improve your current cover.

We understand that your health is a personal matter, and your policy needs to reflect that. For example, if you're young and single you may not be interested in cover for pregnancy, IVF treatment or hip replacement, but you might be keen to keep your options open on chiropractic, physiotherapy and remedial massage. Similarly, couples and families have different needs, and are looking for cover that offers flexibility for more than one person.

We take the time and stress out of choosing cover by researching insurers, comparing policies, and obtaining quotes so that we can provide you with the options that are best suited to you.

Flexibility is key, and we encourage our customers to consider mixing and matching products from different insurers. Many people think they have to buy their hospital and extras cover from the same provider, but this isn't the case. Separating these two policies will give you much more choice, and we can help you arrange each element of your policy so you get the most out of it.

Completing a personal assessment

If you prefer a personal touch, we can help.

You can call one of HICA's experienced private health insurance consultants on 1300 44 2201, for the cost of a local call. They will discuss with you your personal health cover requirements, and produce details of a recommended cover option.

Alternatively, you can choose to fill out our free Health Insurance Assessment form which you can either submit online, or print, complete, and return to Reply Paid 1000 Templestowe, or fax to HICA on (03) 9431 4469. The results of your assessment, whether it was delivered by phone, fax, e-mail or post will be returned to you usually within 48 hours via email.

By gaining a better understanding of you as an individual or family unit, HICA can help save on the cost of your private health insurance. In fact, HICA often saves families hundreds of dollars per year on their health insurance, and it's important to realise you do not pay additional fees or incur higher premiums by making use of our consulting services.

Working to your requirements

Tailoring our services to the needs of our individual customers is at the heart of what we do, and this also includes your budget.

The government has put in place measures to encourage Australians to take out private health insurance, including helping with the costs of premiums through the private health insurance rebate. We, therefore, ensure that the policies we recommend to our customers not only provide the best cover, but do so at the best price. We research policy options to find those with better benefits and premium savings, and monitor the market to make sure that you're always getting high value coverage to meet your needs.

There are also government penalties for those who don't have appropriate hospital cover, but can afford it. This is called the Medicare Levy Surcharge, which is an additional tax on top of the normal 2% Medicare Levy. If you're looking to purchase or switch insurance for the purpose of avoiding paying the Medicare Levy Surcharge, HICA can help find cover that will reduce or eliminate those tax penalties.

You can select appropriate cover and join online using HICA's easy Health Insurance Cover selector. This simple tool allows you to personalise your policy through selecting hospital cover, extras, or both; choosing your excesses, and deciding how frequently you want to pay. If you want some assistance at any stage, simply call a HICA consultant for advice on 1300 44 2201.

Providing ongoing support

Purchasing your insurance policy isn't the end of the story, and at HICA we pride ourselves on providing ongoing support to our clients to make sure they're always getting the most out of their cover.

Some people are reluctant to change health policies, and this can be for a number of reasons. Some think it'll be too much hassle, some think there will be long waiting periods as they transition, and others are simply unaware that there may be better options for them out there.

This isn't how it should be. Circumstances change, and health isn't static, so we consistently review your cover arrangements and search to see if we could be doing better. We're there to make sure that you're aware of any changes to your policy, as well as more general shifts in private health trends, and we can help you to join or switch policies without stress or confusion.

It's worth noting that changing products has been made even easier for customers seeking to gain increased access to in-hospital treatment for mental health, as well as drug and alcohol services. Policyholders are now able to do this without serving the usual waiting period, meaning that cover upgrades in this area now translate to immediate access to care.

Whether it's a changing health condition, or a question on how to alter your premium contributions, HICA is there to provide advice on any matters relating to your private health insurance policy.