Established in 1954 by the NSW Teachers Federation, Teachers Health is now Australia’s largest industry-based health fund.
This not-for-profit fund is part of the Members Own Network. It covers over 350,000 teachers, education employees and their families.
The Teachers Health fund has a strong focus on corporate social responsibility and runs a number of sponsorships, scholarships, and programs to care for the health and wellbeing of those in the education community.
Nobody chooses to go to hospital. But when you do, hospital cover will help you get the treatment you need, where and when you want it. It also helps to pay the bills, as fees for hospital rooms and specialists can add up.
Think about what services you’re likely to need, in line with your budget. If you earn over $90,000 individually or $180,000 as a couple, you could avoid paying the Medicare Levy Surcharge.
Teachers Health offers five hospital plans. Each level of cover, from Basic Plus to Gold, builds on the level before it.
All Teachers Health plans include emergency ambulance cover. If you don’t want to take out hospital or extras cover, you can purchase emergency ambulance cover separately. Queensland and Tasmanian residents won’t need to do this as they’re covered by their state schemes.
From dental, to optical, to chiro and more, extras insurance helps cover the bills for routine treatments with rebates of up to 100%.
While we’ve summarised the key points of each plan below, it’s always worth digging a little deeper into any gap fees, how much you can claim back, and whether your preferred healthcare provider, such as your local dentist, has an agreement with the health fund.
Take the time to work out what you need and what you’re prepared to pay. If this feels a bit overwhelming, you can speak to one of our experts who can talk you through what’s included in each extras policy.
Teachers Health offers three levels of extras cover: StarterPak, Essential Extras and their most expensive Top Extras policy.
The first can only be purchased with hospital cover and the other two can be purchased on their own.
To stop people signing up, claiming, then cancelling their health insurance, all insurers apply waiting periods. Generally, the more expensive the treatment, the longer you’ll wait. But keep an eye out for special deals with waiting periods reduced or waived.
All Teachers Health members can access:
Claim on the spot through HICAPS at a provider. You can also claim through the Teachers Health app and online, or by email or post.
Teachers Health has agreements with many private hospitals and day surgeries across Australia. When comparing policies, it’s worth checking if your local hospitals and clinics are covered. Our specialists at Health Insurance Comparison can do this for you.
Teachers Health received 6 complaints from 1 January to 30 March 2020. That’s 2% of complaints vs 2.4% market share, indicating customer service may be above average.
Source: Private Health Ombudsmans
Teachers Health is exclusively for members of the education community and their families. This includes current and former primary, secondary and tertiary teachers, teachers’ aides, lecturers and support and administration staff from public, private and independent institutions around Australia.
A member’s spouse or partner, and other family members can join the fund too. This includes siblings, adult children and grandchildren.
Teachers Health isn’t on our panel but we’re confident we can find you a great deal on your health insurance. You’ll need to contact Teachers Health directly if you’re interested in switching to one of their policies.
Yes, you can choose a lower or higher level of cover to suit your different life stages. If you move to a higher level of cover, you will usually need to serve waiting periods on the extra services and/or higher benefits.
Teachers Health isn’t on our panel but we’re confident we can get you a great deal on your health cover. Click on your life stage to get started.
Our experts can provide you with free personal advice. Let us call you.