Basic · $750 excess · pregnancy no · psychiatric restricted · joints no
$205.20/mo
$2,462.40/yr before rebate
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Health insurance question · New South Wales · Couple · release 2026-10-01 · ranked 2026-11-09
Hospital cover to avoid the Medicare Levy Surcharge in New South Wales for a couple
In New South Wales, the cheapest of 542 open hospital policies for a couple that the release flags as exempting the holder from the Medicare Levy Surcharge with an excess no more than $1,500, from 30 insurers (median $374.80 a month), is ahm health insurance's ambulance hospital (basic) at $205.20 a month before the government rebate, or about $155.71 after the 24.118% rebate for under-65s on the base income tier (up to $210,000, 1 July 2026 to 31 March 2027), with a $750 excess per person, as published to the Private Health Insurance Ombudsman in its monthly open-data release dated 2026-10-01, read and ranked by OpenStream on 2026-11-09.
The answers above this page
The 10 cheapest of 542
Hospital policies the regulator's release flags as meeting the surcharge exemption, with an excess within the $1,500 cap PrivateHealth.gov.au states for couples and families (2026-27). Extras-only cover does not count. Whether the surcharge applies to you depends on your income; the rates are below.
1 Go to ahm health insurance2 
Basic · $750 excess · pregnancy no · psychiatric restricted · joints noGo to see-u by HBF$206.78/mo$2,481.36/yr before rebate3 
Basic · $750 excess · pregnancy no · psychiatric restricted · joints noGo to GMHBA Limited$208.10/mo$2,497.20/yr before rebate4 
Basic · $750 excess · pregnancy no · psychiatric restricted · joints noGo to HCF$210.10/mo$2,521.20/yr before rebate5 
Basic · $750 excess · pregnancy no · psychiatric restricted · joints noGo to HBF Health Limited$210.74/mo$2,528.88/yr before rebate6 Basic · $750 excess · pregnancy no · psychiatric restricted · joints noGo to Phoenix Health Fund Limited$211.20/mo$2,534.40/yr before rebate7 Basic · $750 excess · pregnancy no · psychiatric restricted · joints noGo to see-u by HBF$215.64/mo$2,587.68/yr before rebate8 Basic · $750 excess · pregnancy no · psychiatric restricted · joints noGo to ahm health insurance$217.50/mo$2,610.00/yr before rebate9 
Basic · $750 excess · pregnancy no · psychiatric restricted · joints noGo to Bupa HI Pty Ltd$219.30/mo$2,631.60/yr before rebate10 Basic Plus · $750 excess · pregnancy no · psychiatric restricted · joints no · restricted membershipGo to Defence Health Limited$220.00/mo$2,640.00/yr before rebate
542 policies from 30 insurers answer this question in the release dated 2026-10-01; median $374.80 a month. Premiums are per month before the Australian Government rebate and any Lifetime Health Cover loading, as each insurer published them. Every tier and household in New South Wales.
The 100 cheapest of 542, ranked
As published to the Private Health Insurance Ombudsman in its monthly open-data release dated 2026-10-01, read and ranked by OpenStream on 2026-11-09. Every qualifying policy with its excess, its published premium and that premium after the government rebate in each of the three age bands the rebate is published in. This page shows the cheapest 100.
What changes the figure
Set by law, not by the insurer; quoted from PrivateHealth.gov.au with the period each applies to.
The surcharge taxes having none
Earn over $105,000 as a single or $210,000 as a family in 2026-27 with no hospital cover and the Medicare Levy Surcharge adds 1% to 1.5% of your income to your tax. Hospital cover with an excess of $750 or less (singles) or $1,500 (families) avoids it; extras-only cover does not.
PrivateHealth.gov.au, Medicare Levy SurchargeThe rebate takes money off
The government pays part of every premium, in four income tiers and three age bands. For 1 July 2026 to 31 March 2027: under 65 it is 24.118% on the base tier, 16.079% on tier 1, 8.038% on tier 2 and nothing on tier 3; from 65 it rises to 28.139% and from 70 to 32.158% on the base tier. Singles' base tier ends at $105,000, families' at $210,000 plus $1,500 a child after the first. Claim it as a lower premium through the insurer, or at tax time.
PrivateHealth.gov.au, Australian Government Rebate on private health insuranceQuestions
Answered from the release dated 2026-10-01.
- Does a Basic hospital policy avoid the Medicare Levy Surcharge in New South Wales?
- 20 open Basic hospital policies for a couple in New South Wales are flagged in the release dated 2026-10-01 as giving the exemption with an excess within the $1,500 cap; the cheapest of every tier is ahm health insurance's ambulance hospital (basic) at $205.20 a month.
- What excess is allowed?
- PrivateHealth.gov.au states hospital cover counts only if its excess is no more than $750 for a single or $1,500 for a couple or family (2026-27). Policies over the cap are left off this page.
- Is the premium what I would pay?
- No. $205.20 a month is the figure ahm health insurance published to the regulator for a couple in New South Wales on 2026-10-01, before the Australian Government rebate and before any Lifetime Health Cover loading; what you pay depends on your income tier, your age when you first took hospital cover and the excess you choose.
- What is the cheapest after the Australian Government rebate?
- ahm health insurance's ambulance hospital (basic) at $205.20 a month published comes to under 65 about $155.71 a month, 65 to 69 about $147.46 a month, 70 and over about $139.21 a month on the base income tier (1 July 2026 to 31 March 2027), as published to the Private Health Insurance Ombudsman in its monthly open-data release dated 2026-10-01, read and ranked by OpenStream on 2026-11-09. Every row below carries the same three figures.
Related
Other questions for a couple in New South Wales, the same question for other households, and the guides behind the settings.
- Cheapest hospital cover in New South Wales for a couple
- Cheapest hospital and extras cover in New South Wales for a couple
- Hospital cover under $200 a month in New South Wales for a couple
- Hospital cover under $250 a month in New South Wales for a couple
- Hospital cover under $300 a month in New South Wales for a couple
- Hospital cover to avoid the Medicare Levy Surcharge in New South Wales for a single
- Hospital cover to avoid the Medicare Levy Surcharge in New South Wales for a family
- Hospital cover to avoid the Medicare Levy Surcharge in New South Wales for a single parent
- The Medicare Levy Surcharge and hospital cover
- Lifetime Health Cover loading and the rebate
- Hospital cover tiers explained
- Every health insurance question, by state
Important information
General information only. Not advice.
- Every premium on these pages is the figure the insurer publishes to the Private Health Insurance Ombudsman's PrivateHealth.gov.au data, release dated 01-Oct-2026, shown per month before the Australian Government rebate and before any Lifetime Health Cover loading. What you pay depends on your income tier, your age when you first took hospital cover, your state and the excess you choose. It can be lower or higher than the figure shown.
- OpenStream does not consider your health, your circumstances or your needs. A cheaper policy may exclude a service you will need; waiting periods, excesses, co-payments, hospital agreements and age-based discounts differ by policy. Read the insurer's Private Health Information Statement (PHIS) before deciding; every policy here links to the regulator's record.
- OpenStream is not a registered health insurer, does not sell insurance and does not arrange cover. Links to insurers go to the insurer's own website. We receive no payment from any health insurer at the date shown; if that changes, it will be stated on this page and on the methodology page, and it will never change the order policies appear in, which is by published premium alone.
- Private health insurance is not a financial product under section 765A(1)(c) of the Corporations Act 2001, so this comparison is not a financial service and OpenStream does not hold an Australian financial services licence. If you want personal advice, speak to the insurer or a licensed adviser.
- Source: PrivateHealth.gov.au open data, published by the Private Health Insurance Ombudsman on data.gov.au under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia. Products closed to new members are not shown. Figures are reproduced, not estimated.
General information only, not advice. OpenStream is not an insurer, not a broker and holds no Australian financial services licence. It does not sell, arrange or recommend insurance, and nothing here is a recommendation or a quote. Everything on this page is built from public sources - regulators, government bodies and the providers' own published material - each named and dated where it is used, so you can check it yourself. It does not take account of your circumstances. How OpenStream works · Corrections and complaints