As a proudly member-owned health fund, our priority is making sure our members have clear information and support. Affordable private health cover matters – especially for older Australians who are more likely to need hospital and extras services.

We’re keeping a close eye on the Government’s proposal and will update this page with information as it becomes available.

What is the Private Health Insurance rebate?

The Private Health Insurance rebate is a contribution from the Government that helps reduce the cost of private health insurance.

Right now, the rebate is higher for older Australians, recognising that health needs often increase as we age.

How the rebate works today:

Under the current system, eligible members receive a base rebate, with additional support available for older Australians.

For example, under the current system:

• People aged under 65 may receive a rebate of up to 24.118%

• People aged 65–69 may receive a rebate of up to 28.139%

• People aged 70 and over may receive a rebate of up to 32.158%.

This extra age-based support helps make private health cover more affordable at a time when older Australians are more likely to use their cover. It’s this part of their rebate that the Government is proposing to remove.

If there is more than one person on a policy, the rebate is generally based on the age of the oldest person covered by that policy. This means the proposed change may affect the rebate applied to the whole policy, including people under 65.

What’s being proposed?

The Government is proposing to remove the higher rebate for people aged 65 and over. This is not a change proposed or made by us at Health Partners.

If the change goes ahead, older Australians would receive the lower base rebate that currently applies to people under 65.

In simple terms, this could mean some older Australians pay more for their private health insurance than they do today.

What we’re doing for members.

As a proudly member-owned health fund, our priority is making sure our members have clear information and support.

We’re watching the proposal closely and working with the Members Health Fund Alliance to advocate for older Australians. The Members Health Fund Alliance represents Australia’s not-for-profit and member-owned health funds, working together to protect the interests of our members and keep private health cover accessible and affordable.

Being part of the Alliance means we join a stronger national voice advocating for fair, member-first outcomes – especially for Australians who rely on cover as they age.

Here’s what you can do in the meantime.

There’s no action you need to take today, but if you’d like to have your say or stay across what’s happening, here are a couple of options:

1. Share your concerns with your local Member of Parliament

If you’re concerned about what the proposed rebate changes could mean for you, we encourage you to contact your local Federal Member of Parliament. You can let them know why affordable private health cover matters to you, and why you believe older Australians should continue to receive extra support through the rebate.

2. Stay informed.

Because these changes have only been proposed by the Government, there’s nothing you need to do right now. We’ll continue to monitor the proposal and update this page as more information becomes available.

We're here for you

We’ll update this page as information becomes available.

Being a Health Partners member means being part of a proudly member-owned health fund that has supported South Australians for nearly 90 years. Thank you for choosing us to be your health partner.