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Health insurance prices are influenced by where you live, and NT has some of the lowest monthly premium averages in Australia.
Learn morePrivate hospital insurance can help you avoid lengthy public waiting times and increase your chances of getting treatment sooner.
Learn moreIn NT, you’ll be required to pay for ambulance services unless you are exempt.
Learn moreOur experts are here to help you navigate a wide range of products and find a policy that suits your needs.
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Our health insurance expert, Steven Spicer, has some tips for choosing the right NT health insurance.
When comparing insurance policies, deciding on the right level of cover is essential; it could be the difference between receiving a rebate or leaving yourself completely out of pocket. You can decide from standalone hospital cover, extras only or combined hospital with extras policies.
Extras cover is for eligible services that occur outside of hospitals, including dental, massage, optical and physiotherapy. When considering policies, think about what services you’re likely to use. This approach allows you to get the cover you need while minimising or avoiding paying for extras you’ll never use. You can also adapt your cover as you age and your health needs change.
One of the best things that comes with private health insurance is the flexibility. Being treated as a private patient allows you to avoid public hospital waiting times and choose when and where to have your treatment. Subject to availability, you’ll also be able to choose your specialist and receive a private room.
Hospital cover can pay towards medically necessary procedures when you are admitted to hospital as a private patient and is available in four tiers: Basic, Bronze, Silver and Gold. Below are the average prices in the NT for each tier compared to those of national premiums. These figures should be used as a guide rather than a direct quote.
Overall | Basic | Bronze | Silver | Gold | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
NT Premiums (monthly) | $184.48 | $117.46 | $136.78 | $201.22 | $281.80 |
National Premiums (monthly) | $171.01 | $104.71 | $124.48 | $186.21 | $268.30 |
Source: Privatehealth.gov.au, current as of August 20241 |
The above numbers are based on monthly premiums for single-only policies that exempt you from the Medicare Levy Surcharge with a $750 excess. It doesn’t include any rebates, discounts or loadings. Plus policies are included in the base tier (e.g. Silver Plus policies are factored in with the silver category).
Extras cover doesn’t have levels like private hospital cover does. The cost of your extras cover will depend on a couple of factors, including how much cover you have, your annual limit and your health fund.
The average cost for extras in the NT is $76.07, compared to the national average of 84.73.1 In fact, the NT has the lowest average cost for extras of all the Australian states and territories.
While public hospitals offer free surgery and procedures under Medicare, a potential downside is the lengthy wait times. For elective surgeries, patients who go through the public system can find themselves waiting months or even years for treatment.
In an emergency room, patients are treated by how critical their condition is rather than arrival time. Below are the recommended times in which hospitals should treat cases depending on their level of urgency:2
The table below shows the average NT emergency room waiting time in minutes.
Emergency | Urgent | Semi Urgent | Non-urgent | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Waiting Times (in minutes) | 11 | 37 | 44 | 43 |
Source: AIWH – Emergency Department care 2022-23 data tables.2 Times for Indigenous Australians are omitted as they may vary due to the remoteness of their place of residence. |
Elective surgery covers a wide range of treatments, and each procedure may entail different average wait times. Below are the average wait times for common elective procedures and the percentage of patients referred for the procedure who waited more than 365 days for their treatment.
Intended procedure | Average waiting times | Percentage of patients who waited more than 365 |
---|---|---|
Arthroscopy | 31 | 6.2 |
Breast Lump – excision or biopsy | 27 | 7.1 |
Carpal tunnel release | 40 | 1.7 |
Cataract extraction | 306 | 42.2 |
Cholecystectomy (open/laparoscopic) | 35 | 1.6 |
Curettage and evacuation of uterus | 1 | 0 |
Cystoscopy | 34 | 8.3 |
Haemorrhoidectomy | 39 | 0.3 |
Herniorrhaphy | 70 | 8.9 |
Hysterectomy | 30 | 6.5 |
Hysteroscopy, dilatation and curettage | 16 | 1.0 |
Inguinal herniotomy/Herniorrhaphy | 50 | 1.8 |
Laparoscopy | 36 | 5.2 |
Myringoplasty | 300 | 43.5 |
Myringotomy | 45 | 13.1 |
Prostate Biopsy | 31 | 0.0 |
Prostatectomy | 66 | 6.9 |
Septoplasty | 131 | 22.7 |
Skin lesion | 24 | 0.3 |
Tonsillectomy (with or without adenoidectomy) | 55 | 19.0 |
183 | 36.4 | |
191 | 33.7 | |
Varicose Veins Treatment | 107 | 10 |
Other Procedures | 21 | 5.3 |
Source: AIHW Elective surgery waiting times 2022-23 Data Tables3 |
Ambulance services are run by state governments, meaning ambulance service fees will vary depending on which state you live in. With the exception of Queensland and Tasmania, all Australian states and territories charge a fee for ambulance services.
In NT, ambulances aren’t a free service or covered by Medicare.
The cost of ambulance services in the NT is based on both a callout fee (usually $407-$897) for the first 10 kilometres, and a per-kilometre fee of $5.80 after that.4 The biggest cost factor will be how far you need to travel.
If you have cover through St John Ambulance or your private healthcare includes ambulance cover, you may be able to claim a rebate for some or all of the ambulance fees. Northern Territorians who take out cover through St John Ambulance or a private health fund will be covered for ambulance services in any state in Australia.
If you hold an NT Pensioner Concession Card, you may be eligible for free ambulance transportation without needing ambulance cover.5
Medicare pays a benefit towards many services and treatments, however, there can be a lengthy waitlist if you choose to be treated in a public hospital. A suitable health insurance policy can provide peace of mind when you need medical treatments, both when they’re expected and unexpected. Hospital policies provide cover for elective surgeries and allow you to be treated as a private patient in a private hospital, which comes with benefits such as shorter waiting times and choice of available specialists.
There are also many out-of-hospital health services, such as dentists and physio, where Medicare provides no or limited coverage. This is where extras cover can be particularly beneficial.
Private hospital cover can help cover the cost of inpatient hospital procedures in a private hospital setting. This includes a range of elective surgeries and other in-hospital treatments, as well as various fees associated with hospital stays.
Hospital cover policies are divided into four tiers, which are Basic, Bronze, Silver and Gold. The minimum number of clinical categories covered under each tier is legally required, so the treatments you’re covered for in each tier will be the same regardless of which provider you choose, however, insurers can include additional clinical categories from a tier above on their ‘plus’ policies.
Extras cover is health insurance that provides cover for out-of-hospital services. Also called ancillary cover, extras cover can include services including dental, optical, physiotherapy and more. Your eligibility to make a claim will depend on whether you’ve served a waiting period.
As the Executive General Manager of Health, Life and Energy, Steven Spicer is a strong believer in the benefits of private cover and knows just how valuable the peace of mind that comes with cover can be. He is passionate about demystifying the health insurance industry and advocates for the benefits of comparison when it comes to saving money on your premiums.
1 Commonwealth Ombudsman Data – Privatehealth.gov. Accessed September 2024.
2 Australian Institute of Health and Welfare – Emergency Department care 2022-23 data tables. Accessed September 2024.
3 Australian Institute of Health and Welfare – Elective surgery waiting times 2022-23 data tables. Accessed September 2024.
4 St John Ambulance Northern Territory ‒ Ambulance Transport Rates. Accessed September 2024.
5 Northern Territory Government ‒ Ambulance services. Accessed September 2024.