Every year, health insurers review their premiums to ensure they are priced accordingly against the rise in healthcare costs.

In February 2024, Latrobe Health will start communicating with members about changes to their 2024 health insurance premium.

No. Latrobe Health is a not-for-profit member owned health fund. This means we don’t report to or distribute profits to shareholders. Any net operating margin earned because of a rate increase will be directly added to the fund’s reserves. This ensures future payment of claims, benefits for members and covers our operational costs and overheads (which we keep extremely low each year – around 10c in every dollar).

You can lock in your current premium rate by paying upfront before 30 March 2024. This offer means you’ve paid your premiums at the current rate for the duration of that advance payment. This can be 12 months', six months, three months, one month or one fortnight worth of premiums. For more information on this, or to pre-pay your premiums, log into the Online Member Area on our website, or call us on 1300 362 144 to take advantage of this offer. 

Yes, this is called rate protection. You can lock in your current premiums, paying up to 12 months in advance, provided we receive your payment before 30 March 2024. If premium rates are increased within the period you have already paid for your insurance, you will not have to pay increased rates until that period ends.

Please remember that this year, Good Friday falls on Friday, 29 March and our contact centre will be closed. If you would like to organise your rate protection payment over the phone, you will need to do so by 6pm on Thursday, 28 March.

You can save time and hassle by automating your premium payments at a frequency that suits you. This could be weekly, fortnightly, monthly, quarterly, half-yearly or even yearly. You can do this by:

• logging in to online member services
• using the Latrobe Health mobile app
• calling us on 1300 362 144 (Mon–Fri: 8.30am–6pm, AEST/AEDT)
• visiting a Latrobe Health branch located in Moe, Traralgon, Morwell, Warragul and Bairnsdale.

Please note, we do not accept cheques.

The value of private health insurance is clear when you use it (and not all health episodes are planned).  Keeping your private health cover means you will:

• have access to the best private hospitals with state-of-the art facilities when you need care
• be able to choose your doctor, giving you trust in the quality of care and outcomes.
• not have to spend months (or even years) on a public hospital waiting list
• save yourself tax (if you’re a high-income earner) by not having to pay the Medicare Levy Surcharge
• avoid a Lifetime Health Cover loading (by having hospital cover before you turn 31)
• have additional health services not covered by Medicare, such as dental, physiotherapy and remedial massage. If you’ve got private health insurance cover with extras, this can help with the cost of these services.

Health insurance is much more than a cost – it’s about giving you more choice for your healthcare, less time waiting for the services you need and (most importantly) the peace of mind to know that you’ll be looked after when you need it most.

We understand there are services that some of our Members won’t need, but still have peace of mind that they are covered for unexpected or specific health needs. That’s why we provide a range of covers to suit all budgets and life circumstances. Our Silver Plus hospital cover has fewer exclusions, and our Bronze covers the most common hospital treatments.

We can help you choose the right cover for services you use regularly, or for a specific need like optical, dental, massage or physiotherapy. Please note, if you do remove cover waiting periods will apply if you want to add that cover back on at any point, including 12 months for obstetrics and pre-existing conditions, and two months for psychiatric, rehabilitation and palliative care.

If you would like to review your cover to ensure you are on the best product suited to your needs, please call us on 1300 362 144 (Mon–Fri: 8.30am–6pm, AEST/AEDT) to complete a cover review.

The Australian Government calculates the national average based on the premium increases it approves for all Australian health funds.

Because your premium increase relates to your chosen level of Latrobe Health cover, it may be different to the national average (or the Latrobe Health average). Your premium increase reflects the balance between managing member payments against the claims we pay out for all members on your level of cover in your state.

When it comes to reviewing our rates, we look at every level of cover individually and work out how much we need to increase the cost by to keep people covered, including the cost of claims.

We’ll keep doing everything we can to keep our costs as low as possible while still giving you great quality cover.

Because we’re a not-for-profit fund, we only ever increase membership payments by what it costs to pay claims and keep our fund running. Any increases we make are closely reviewed and approved by the Australian Federal Government.

Any net operating margin earned as a result of this rate increase will be directly added to the fund’s reserves to ensure the future payment of claims, benefits for members, and covering our operational costs and overheads (which we keep extremely low each year – around 10c in every dollar).

To calculate a premium, we use claims and service cost data from previous years to estimate the amount we’ll need to spend in the coming year. Premiums are then adjusted for each type of cover so we can safely cover those predicted costs.

Premium increases aren’t calculated at an individual member level. Your premium change just depends on the kind of cover you have. Community rating applies to private health insurance, it means everyone with the same cover will have the same premium change.

Your final premium amount each year will be a combination of the cover's premium change, any discounts that you have, your Lifetime Health Cover loading, and, if applicable (and in addition) your Australian Government Rebate on Private Health Insurance.

Calculation of premium increases is subject to external scrutiny. To obtain a premium increase an application must be submitted to the Australian Government Minister for Health. The Department of Health and the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA), the independent health insurance financial regulator, assess all applications to increase premiums before these are passed to the Minister of Health to consider. A health fund needs to provide sufficient information to demonstrate to the Minister of Health that the increase is necessary. If an increase is regarded as contrary to the public interest it will not be approved.

To find more information about your product or policy you can:

• refer to the policy document we sent you with your letter or email
• log into the online member service area on our website and find your policy document and view limits and waiting periods applicable to you
• email us info@lhs.com.au
• call us on 1300 362 144

We are proud to be a part of Private Health Care Australia and the Members Health Fund Alliance. These industry groups act on our behalf on matters of importance within the industry, such as rising healthcare costs. For more information, visit the Department of Health's website.

Your premium letter or email will include your Private Health Insurance Statement (PHIS) as it is a Federal Government requirement that every year we send you a copy. The PHIS outlines your cover with a list of what is and is not covered as well as your waiting periods and limits for the year.

The premiums shown on the PHIS may be different to the premiums you pay, as your PHIS shows the standard premium amount. It does not include any government rebate, Lifetime Health Cover loading and age-based discounts, all of which affect the price you pay.  

For those who have an Ambulance Victoria membership as part of your cover, the PHIS also excludes this amount if this applies to you, the product code at the top of this letter will include an “A”.

For more information on the age-based discount, Lifetime Health Cover loading and/or the Australian Government Private Health Insurance Rebate, head privatehealth.gov.au.

The Australian Government Rebate on private health insurance was introduced in 1999 to help make health insurance more affordable.

Each year on 1 April, the government compares the national average of health fund premium increases to the standard cost of living in Australia, known as Consumer Price Index (CPI). Unfortunately, because the rebate is a government initiative, we don’t have control over how much it’s reduced by. For more information on changes to the rebate visit privatehealth.gov.au or ato.gov.au

As a not-for-profit, member owned health fund based in regional Victoria, we’re dedicated to supporting our Members during difficult times and improving the health of regional communities by investing in programs and initiatives. In 2023 we continued our health initiatives and community programs by:

• expanding our healthy heart checks program around regional Victorians, providing over 1700 Victorians with free heart checks.
• teaming up with Shane Warne Legacy and SiSU Health to bring free 4-minute heart health tests to the 2023 Boxing Day Test and Priceline Pharmacies across Visit https://shanewarnelegacy.com/pages/heart-test to find your nearest heart test station.
• funding a $16m redevelopment of Maryvale Private Hospital.
• providing gifts for children in regional Victoria through Quantum’s Christmas appeal.
• supporting local artists by helping to fund the 2023 Moe Arts Festival.
• sponsoring scholarships for the Gippsland Community Leadership Program.
• partnering with Phoenix Australia to bring accessible resources and bulk-billed post-traumatic specialists and treatment services to regional Victoria.

If you have a question about your premium change, we're here to help. Our friendly team of health cover experts are always happy to discuss your health insurance needs.  Give us a call on 1300 362 144, Mon-Fri: 8.30am–6pm AEST/AEDT, or start a live chat session on our website at latrobehealth.com.au. Just look for the message box at the bottom of the screen.

We usually receive high call volumes this time of year, so you can also email info@lhs.com.au us or ask us in branch.

You can also find more information about how private health insurance works at private health care explained or take a look at our member guide.

If you feel your current coverage doesn’t meet your lifestyle and health needs, it’s time to review your cover. It’s important to remember, when comparing other policies, make sure you’re comparing like-for-like. If you’re on a Gold Hospital product, you’re on the most comprehensive hospital product you can buy anywhere in the market – so every cover below Gold (Silver Plus, Silver, Bronze Plus and Bronze) is likely to be cheaper but also have exclusions.

Compare Latrobe’s hospital covers and extras covers, or call us on 1300 362 144.