Frank has frozen premiums for members. Premium increases that were due to come into effect on 1 April 2023 have been deferred until 1 October 2023.
Deferring this premium increase means that an estimated $2.3 million in COVID-19 claims savings will be returned to Frank members. In addition to the savings already returned to members through previous premium freezes in 2020 and 2022, and the return of COVID-19 claims savings in December 2022 and May-June 2023, this will bring our total support to over $25 million.
Premium freeze FAQ's
Why is Frank freezing premiums?
COVID-19 impacted our members’ ability to use their cover, this resulted in Frank generating unintended savings. We made the decision to return these savings to our members by deferring our planned 2020, 2022 and 2023 premium increases. It’s a simple way for us to return value to our members when they need it the most.
What are claims savings?
Frank set aside funds to pay for claims that had to be postponed during the pandemic, as we expected our members would seek treatment in the future. Not all claims that we planned for have been made, which is why we are returning value to our members via various methods, such as the return of claims savings in December 2022 and May-June 2023, and now another premium freeze.
Why do premiums usually change each year?
Frank has frozen premium increases for 6 months, until 1 October 2023.
Health insurance premiums go up because health care costs increase year-on-year. Health care costs are driven by a number of factors outside of private health insurers' control, including:
- Increased cost of health service delivery with things like new medical technologies and treatments
- An ageing population and people living longer
- Increases in chronic conditions.
Learn more: Premium review
What more can I do to save on health insurance costs?
Review your cover to make sure you’re only paying for what you’re likely to need. Contact us to assess your cover and see if you’re on the right policy for your health needs.
Will the support measures put in place during the pandemic be extended?
Frank continues to assess the support measures put in place during the pandemic.
COVID-19 related hospitalisation cover
During the pandemic, Frank introduced temporary support measures which meant existing active members with hospital cover were covered for all COVID-19 related hospital treatments as a private patient (even if the applicable clinical category was an exclusion on your level of cover). The two-month waiting period was also required to have been served. This coverage has previously been extended throughout 2020, 2021 and 2022 and has now expired on 30 April 2023. This was previously communicated in August 2022.
From 1 May 2023, if you are admitted to hospital as a result of a condition developed from contracting coronavirus, whether you are eligible for benefits will depend on whether the condition falls under a clinical category covered by your policy, e.g. if you have a lung complaint, it will be necessary for your policy to cover "Lung and Chest" in order for you to receive benefits.
Please check your policy documents to understand what clinical categories you are currently covered for and if they will still be suitable for your needs now that the temporary COVID-19 hospitalisation cover has ended.
Telehealth benefits
Telehealth benefits for some extras services that were introduced as part of our COVID-19 support package (in line with the level of cover you hold) are now permanent. Learn more about telehealth and what services are eligible.
