Australians with private health cover will pay more from 1 April after the Albanese government approved an industry wide average premium rise of 4.41%.
Health Minister Mark Butler said insurers had to resubmit their requests several times before the government made the final decision.
The increase is higher than last year’s average rise of 3.73% and the 4.41% figure is an average but what people pay will depend on their fund and product. Some of the biggest insurers are set for increases closer to 5% while others will be lower.
Butler said the rise matches higher costs across the health system. He said medical and hospital services rose by about 5% last financial year. The government also pointed to rising payouts by insurers.
It said insurers paid more than $26.7 billion in health, medical and extras benefits in the 12 months to 30 September 2025.
The government said much of the cost increase came from hospital care. It said hospital treatment benefits rose by $1.2 billion to $20 billion over that period while general treatment benefits rose by $341 million to $6.7 billion.
It also pointed to a 5% rise in hospital accommodation benefits per episode, the highest growth since this data was first recorded in 2008.
A 4.41% rise means an extra $4.41 for every $100 you pay in premiums before any other changes your insurer makes to your specific product. The annual rise affects more than 15 million Australians who have some form of private health insurance.
The government said it will provide $7.9 billion this year to policyholders through the private health insurance rebate. It urged people to compare products on the government’s privatehealth.gov.au website.
It also flagged new legislation to ban product phoenixing where insurers close a product and reopen a near identical one at a higher price.
Butler said in a statement that the Government understands the pressure health insurance premium changes put on Australians and decisions about private health insurance premiums must put consumers first.
