KEY QUESTIONS

Are you under 31?

If you wait until after you turn 31 to take out private hospital cover, you’ll attract a 2% lifetime health cover (LHC) loading on your premium for every year you’re aged over 30. If you wait until you turn 40, you’ll pay 20% more than someone who took out cover at 30. It’s time to look at a good value health insurance policy now before premiums go up. And if you earn under $140,000pa, the government will soften the blow with a yearly rebate that you can use to reduce your premium. The rebate is around 17% for young singles earning over $90,000pa and decreases to around 9% once you make over $105,000pa.

Do you earn more than $90,000 a year?

If 2017 is looking like a good year and you think you’ll get a pay rise to put you on a salary above $90,000, it’s worthwhile to sign up to private hospital cover this year to save on tax. If you’re over the threshold and don’t have private hospital cover, you’ll have to pay a 1% Medicare levy surcharge at tax time. And the more you earn, the higher the surcharge – the maximum is 1.5%, which applies to incomes over $140,000pa.