Is Union Health Insurance Worth It in Australia? Reviews & Guide 2025

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Why trust HelloSafe? HelloSafe is an international expert in health insurance, guiding over a million users every month in their choice of cover. Our specialists have assessed the offers of 37 insurers in Australia, thoroughly analysing benefits, prices and quality of service.

What does Union Health insurance cover?

Union Health offers tailored hospital and extras covers, from Basic+ (restricted hospital and lower extras), through comprehensive Silver+ and Family options, up to full Gold with highest annual limits and loyalty boosts. Standout strengths are high rebates on dental and physio, no annual dental limit on top extras, generous family and mental health covers, and unique school accident benefits. Many policies let you select an excess level and grow limits over time. Limits include exclusions for outpatient and non-recognised providers, and some basic covers omit major dental, devices, or certain hospital treatments.

Important

for you to easily compare and make your choice, we have added a column with what the public health system reimburses.

Routine medical care

Dental care

Vision care

Specialist and Paramedical Care

Good to know

Who can join Union Health: - Any Australian resident - Must be eligible for Medicare - Minimum age to join is 18 - Dependant children can be covered up to the age of 31, subject to certain conditions. You can add or remove family members (like a partner or children) from your policy at any time. Choose from 4 types of cover to suit your needs: - Single – For just you - Couple – For you and your partner - Single Parent – For one adult and your dependent children - Family – For two adults and your dependent children

What is the cost of Union Health health insurance in 2025?

*Ces tarifs sont donnés à titre indicatifs. Les primes réelles peuvent différer en fonction de votre situation personnelle et des options choisies.*

Is Union Health health insurance accessible to newcomers?

Union Health is particularly relevant for new arrivals, foreign workers, students, and international visitors who do not yet qualify for Medicare or need private medical support while waiting for public system access. It offers comprehensive protection for health needs during the critical first months in Australia.

• Medical care Benefit for inpatient treatment such as hospital doctor’s and specialist fees, accommodation, and surgery. For example, Bronze+ Hospital reimburses costs for procedures like hernia repair, while Gold Hospital covers all clinical categories including maternity and cardiac surgery.
• Prescribed care In-hospital pharmaceuticals are covered, plus reimbursement for prescriptions under extras up to limits (e.g. $50–$70 per script, $200–$400 per year depending on cover).
• Specialist care Access to private hospital specialists and a wide range of procedures—key diseases and surgeries included up to your policy’s annual limit. For example, orthopaedic or cancer treatments, subject to waiting periods and policy restrictions.
• Emergency dental care Hospital costs for dental surgery under anaesthetic are covered, and outpatient dental treatment is reimbursed up to $400–$3,400/year depending on extras formula and seniority of cover.
• Medical transport Emergency ambulance is included in all hospital covers; family extras also include limited air ambulance and state-based coverage, up to $6,000/year for air transport when included.
• Additional expenses (hospitalisation or death) Extras products contribute towards hearing aids ($1,500–$2,000/3 years), health management, and accident programs (e.g. school accident cover); hospital coverage can also include remote access travel and accommodation reimbursement for eligible events.

Hospital and extras policies are typically renewable annually, with no published maximum contract length. Eligibility requires legal residency/visa and usually being under the age of 65 at joining. Waiting periods apply: 1 day for accidents, 2 months for most standard benefits, 12 months for pre-existing conditions, obstetrics, and certain high-cost extras. Treatment overseas and outpatient (non-admitted) care are not covered by hospital plans.

Minimising out-of-pocket costs

Check that your specialists and hospitals are part of the Access Gap or agreement network to minimise personal out-of-pocket costs—ask for informed financial consent before any procedure.

Does Union Health health insurance cover seniors?

Union Health offers dedicated transition arrangements for retirees and those whose group health insurance is ending, ensuring continued access to private health cover adapted to individual needs. The Union Health Continuity Benefit allows eligible former group plan members to convert to individual insurance without medical screening, provided the application is received within 60 days of losing group coverage. This mechanism preserves waiting periods already served, avoiding coverage gaps and immediate benefit loss.

Several options under the Union Health Continuity Benefit allow seniors and retirees to select a level of cover best suited to their health and financial circumstances:

• Basic+ Hospital
• Entry-level cover for essential surgeries and routine inpatient admissions; includes emergency treatments and statutory support for psychiatric, palliative, and rehab care.
• Bronze+ Hospital
• Mid-range cover for a wide array of medical and surgical treatments, including cancer care, musculoskeletal, and select chronic diseases; some specialist services remain restricted.
• Silver+ Family Hospital
• Expanded coverage including pregnancy, assisted reproductive services, hearing support, and diabetes management; designed for families but suitable for seniors seeking broader inpatient protection.
• Silver+ No Pregnancy
• Like Silver+ Family but excludes maternity and assisted reproductive treatments; includes cataract, heart, and device-related procedures.
• Gold Hospital
• Highest available cover with all Medicare clinical categories included—comprehensive inpatient benefits covering chronic, major, or complex health needs with a standard excess.
• Basic, Healthy Options, Mid Range, Everyday, Family, and Comprehensive Extras
• Extras covers tailored to various needs, providing benefits for dental care, optical, therapies (physio, chiro, massage), psychology and mental health services, pharmacy, hearing aids, and health management, with limits and included services increasing at each tier. Loyalty bonuses available for longer-term members, higher cover tiers include broader and higher annual/lifetime limits.

Union Health Continuity Benefit

Under the Union Health Continuity Benefit, members must submit a conversion request within 60 days of losing group or employer coverage. This secures preservation of waiting periods and makes all levels of Union Health hospital and extras cover accessible from the start date of your new contract.

How does reimbursement work with Union Health?

How to contact Union Health?

Union Health Promo Codes

Note: Les codes promos sont susceptibles de changer. Pour obtenir les derniers codes promos, rendez-vous sur notre comparatif des meilleures assurances santé.

FAQ

A. Fruchard

Insurance expert

Co-founder of HelloSafe and an experienced entrepreneur in the insurance and personal finance sector, Antoine uses his experience and in-depth knowledge of the market to help Internet users make the right choices. With an MBA in economics, he is a committed expert whose mission is to make personal finance and insurance issues simple and understandable. With a rich career marked by the creation of innovative companies, Antoine's ambition has always been to bring transparency to complex issues and to give power back to consumers. With HelloSafe, he continues to translate this vision by providing accurate advice, impartial comparisons and detailed explanations of travel insurance. He has analysed hundreds of contracts to reveal the best options available on the market.