Medibank 485 Visa Health Insurance Review

Medibank is a newly formed publically listed health fund that was previously owned by the Australian government. It was listed in December 2014 on the Australian Stock Market under the code MPL.

The health fund owns the subsidiary AHM and offers a range of insurance products from pet, travel to life insurance.

What 485 Visa Health Insurance Policy Does Medibank Offer? is

Medibank offer four “working visa hospital insurance” policies that meet ‘condition 8501’, the condition that requires a minimum level of health insurance for 485 visa holders.

What is Medibank’s Cheapest 485 Health Insurance Policy?

Medibank is one of the more affordable options for visitors when you consider the extra benefits available and the higher level of flexibility. This health insurance policy is called “Working Visa Hospital Insurance”. As of 25/04/2016 this policy costs $125.60, and while this is one of the higher prices, most claim it is worth it in the long run.

It’s important to note that unlike HIF and IMAN this policy has a hospital excess of $300. This means that if you need hospital treatment you will be out of pocket the first $300. This excess doesn’t apply for children on a family policy and is per person annually (calendar year). When admitted to a public hospital for a same day admission only a shared room option exists.

Other Key Factors

1) If You Want GP Cover You Need To Buy A Premium Policy

The “Working Visa Hospital Insurance” policy does not include a visit to your local doctor (general practitioner). In order to have this covered, you will need to increase the policy to the Working Visa Hospital & Medical Insurance policy which is over 50% more than the cheapest Medibank 485 visa health insurance policy. It’s recommended you compare Medibank to other health funds at this policy range to ensure you get the best value policy for your circumstances.

2) Medibank Offers Some Support Services

Medibank offers its 485 health insurance policy holders access to Mi Health. These are support services including a nurse you can call 24/7, online health insurance (on their website) and an online app. As a past policy holder, these features have limited usefulness with most information on these online devices freely available on the internet and the nurse on call in most cases told me to see my GP.

3) Medibank Reviews

On Australia’s largest independent customer review website ‘Product Review’, Medibank has received a very poor score of 2.0 from 134 reviews. You can view their reviews on the widget below with a top line complain summary focusing on the excess payable, issues getting claims approved and the high prices relative to claims payable. A comparison of Medibank to some other health funds offering 485 visa insurance on the 23/12/2014 are:

• BUPA - 1.2 from 84 reviews
• Medibank - 2.0 from 130 reviews
• Australian Unity - 2.1 from 26 reviews
• HIF - 3.6 from 16 reviews

Overall Medibank’s Health Insurance For 485 Visa Holder Outtakes

Medibank is one of Australia’s largest funds and offers a wide range of insurance policies. Their large reach has ensured they cater for the subclass 485 visa market with a range policies. The key issue though is that these policies are largely not competitive when it comes to price, especially at the budget end as you can see from the 485 health insurance comparison table. Largely, Medibank receive applications directly from employers and organisations (eg migration agents) that have a relationship with the health fund. Those that compare policies themselves are likely to choose another fund if they have a ‘price to benefit’ mindset when it comes to health insurance.

Medibank is rated 2.0 stars by 134 customers.

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