Starting A Family

If you’re considering starting a family, you might be thinking about health insurance – especially if you want to give birth in a private hospital. You need to think ahead, since waiting periods for childbirth claims are 12 months, which means you need to start your policy before getting pregnant. Here’s everything you need to know about health insurance for childbirth and cover for your children as they grow up.

Do I need health insurance when starting a family?

In Australia, treatment in public hospitals is free under Medicare – including for childbirth. But if you want the option of going to a private hospital for childbirth, choosing your own doctors and getting a private room (if available), you’ll need Hospital Cover. If you or your kids needs a non-urgent procedure such as tonsillectomy in the future, you can skip public hospital wait times and have the surgery done faster. And if you earn over the Medicare Levy Surcharge threshold, getting Hospital Cover can also lower your taxes.

If you want to lower non-hospital healthcare costs associated with having a family, such as dental check-ups and physiotherapy, an Extras Cover policy might suit your needs.

Mia, becoming a single parent
Mia, 36, is single and has decided to have a baby. Before beginning fertility treatment, she upgrades her Hospital Cover from Silver tier to Gold tier, so that she will be covered for private childbirth – giving her time to serve the 12-month waiting period before she needs to claim. She also takes out Extras Cover to cover pre-natal classes and acupuncture. If the fertility treatment is successful, she will upgrade her Hospital Cover policy from a Single to a Single Parent policy during her pregnancy, to make sure her child will be covered from birth.

Mother,With,Her,Newborn,Baby,At,The,Hospital,A,Day — Image credit: Shuttestock

How much does health insurance cost for childbirth cover?

Private childbirth is covered by Gold tier Hospital Cover – the most expensive level. Using the healthslips.com.au calculator, premiums for Gold tier Hospital Cover for a couple in NSW as at February 2026 were:

Cheapest Hospital Cover – $472.10/month, $750 excess, Mildura Health Fund. But as there’s a 12-month waiting period for childbirth claims, you will have spent $5,665.20 before you can claim.
Most expensive Hospital Cover – $875.60/month, $750 excess, ahm health insurance. The 12-month waiting period means you will have spent $10,507.20 before you can claim for private childbirth.

Remember, if you want your baby to be covered from birth, you’ll need to upgrade to a Family or Single Parent policy before they’re born.

How to choose health insurance in your 30s. A white man and woman sit on couch at coffee table with laptop, bills and calculator. They're smiling. — Image credit: Shutterstock

How much does health insurance cost for a family?

Using the healthslips.com.au calculator, we looked for Bronze tier Hospital Cover policies, which cover 21 out of 38 hospital treatments. As at February 2026, the cheapest Bronze Hospital Cover policy for a family in NSW (2 adults, 1 or more children), was $238.20 a month, with a $750 excess.

For a Combined Hospital and Extras Cover policy, we compared policies at Bronze tier with low-level Extras Cover. As at February 2026, the cheapest Combined Hospital and Extras Cover policy for a family in NSW (2 adults, 1 or more children) was $272.60 a month, with a $750 excess. This only covers 3 Extras treatments, including General Dental and Major Dental.

How to choose health insurance when you're starting a family. Do you need cover for private childbirth?

What type of health insurance should I get?

The easiest way to choose health insurance is to get clear on why you need cover.

Hospital Cover – choose if you want cover for childbirth and elective surgeries in a private hospital, or to reduce taxes by avoiding the Medicare Levy Surcharge (MLS). Remember you will need a Gold tier policy for childbirth cover.

What health treatments are covered by Hospital Cover?

Extras Cover – choose if you want cover for dental, optical, physio and other non-hospital healthcare costs. Does not affect the MLS.

What health treatments are covered by Extras Cover?

Combined Hospital and Extras Cover – choose if you want both of the above. Combining cover types generally doesn’t make the premiums cheaper, but for some people it’s more convenient than separate policies.
Ambulance Only Cover – choose if you want cover just for ambulance treatment. (You don’t need this if you live in Queensland or Tasmania, where ambulance care is free.)

How to choose health insurance if you're starting a family in Australia. What cover you need, and how much it will cost. — Image credit: Shutterstock

Who should I include on my policy?

Single – for one adult
Couple – for 2 adults in a relationship, living together (you don’t have to be married)
Single Parent – for one adult and one or more children
Family – covers 2 adults in a relationship, living together, with one or more children (you don’t have to be married).

Find out how much it costs to include children in your health insurance by using the healthslips.com.au calculator. It’s fast, easy and free.

Jessica and Kelly, choosing a public hospital birth
Jessica and Kelly are expecting a baby. They check their Bronze tier Hospital Cover and find it doesn’t include childbirth cover. They consider upgrading to a Gold tier policy but realise they won’t eligible for childbirth cover due to the 12-month waiting period, so they decide to give birth in a public hospital instead. They use the healthslips.com.au calculator and buy a Family policy that only costs a little more than their Couples policy, so that their baby will be covered from birth.

Private Health Insurance for kids in Australia — Image Credit: Shutterstock

Incentives and penalties that affect families

If you’re starting a family, these government incentives and penalties may affect how much you pay for health insurance:

Government Rebate – lowers your premium based on your income and number of children. Check your eligibility.
Age-based Discount – lowers your Hospital Cover premium if you or your partner is under 30 (not all insurers offer this). On Couple and Family policies, the Discount will be averaged between the 2 adults, depending on their age. Check the details.
Lifetime Health Cover Loading – increases your Hospital Cover premium if you or your partner are starting cover after the age of 31. On Couple and Family policies, the Loading is averaged between the 2 adults, depending on their age and when they started cover. Learn more here.

There’s also a tax called the Medicare Levy Surcharge (MLS) that applies if you don’t have Hospital Cover and earn more than the Medicare Levy Surcharge threshold (which are updated every year).

Sunita and Dan, want to reduce tax
Sunita and Dan are a couple who don’t have children, but hope to in the near future. They both earn over the Medicare Levy Surcharge so they look for Hospital Cover to lower their taxes. They find a Bronze tier Couples policy on the healthslips.com.au calculator that fits their budget and meets their healthcare needs. It does not cover childbirth but Sunita and Dan decide that when they start a family, they will go to a public hospital for the birth.

Young,Couple,Sitting,In,The,Cafe,With,Laptop,Making,Some — Image credit: Shutterstock

How do I choose health insurance when starting a family?

Choose policy type
Choose between Hospital Cover and Extras Cover, or both, for your budget and healthcare needs (and your future children’s). If you want cover for childbirth in a private hospital, you’ll need Gold tier Hospital Cover. If you want cover for kids’ out-of-hospital healthcare, you’ll need Extras Cover.
Choose what to cover
Do you want cover for childbirth? What healthcare needs do you have? Think about the future, including any family history of illnesses.
Find the best fit
Search across every policy in Australia using the healthslips.com.au calculator. It’s fast, free and you can search anonymously (no need to enter your contact details).
Buy your chosen policy
Double-check details like the excess and waiting periods then buy the policy that’s right for you and your family.

Ed and Erin, wanting childbirth cover
Ed and Erin are a couple planning to have children in the next few years. Erin wants to give birth in a private hospital and choose an obstetrician she feels comfortable with. Because there’s a 12-month waiting period for Pregnancy and Birth cover, the couple use the healthslips.com.au calculator and find a Silver Plus tier Hospital Cover policy that covers childbirth. They start cover early so they can claim on it by the time Erin will be pregnant.

Helpful articles How health insurance can cover your costs when you’re having a baby Can I get private health insurance for kids only? What does health cover for pregnancy include? What’s the best age to get health insurance? What’s the best health insurance for Aussie couples?