Almost two million Aussies eligible for up to $344 in cash refunds from Bupa

A major health fund will give its members a sizeable cashback payment, a month after premiums rose. See how much you could get back.

Australia’s second largest insurer will deliver a cash refund of up to $344 per policy on November 1.

The payout by health fund Bupa will be deposited into its members bank accounts a month after the fund raised its premiums by up to 6 per cent.

And it is the third cashback payment made to Bupa members since the pandemic disrupted the private health insurance market by causing massive delays in usual health treatment.

The cash refund is money the fund set aside to cover surgery and extras services that never went ahead because of Covid surgery bans and slow take up of health services in the wake of the pandemic.

Depending on their policy the health fund’s members will get between $47 and $344 just in time for Christmas.

It brings to a total of $1.3 billion the amount the fund has paid back.

More than 1.8 million policyholders who held domestic private health cover with Bupa for a minimum of three months between 1 July 2022 and 30 June 2023 will be eligible for the cashback payment.

Chris Carroll Managing Director, BUPA Private Health Insurance. Picture: Supplied

“The money will go directly into our members’ bank accounts, giving them more choice to use the money in a way that is most valuable to them,” Bupa Health Insurance Managing Director Chris Carroll said.

“The money will be paid using the same bank details from the previous cashbacks, so I encourage our members to make sure their details are up to date with us.”

The November cashback was originally meant to be worth $320 million but Bupa yesterday announced it would be boosted by a further $75 million.

Insurers promised not to profit from Covid, and since the pandemic began in 2020, they have returned some of the savings via lower premium rises, cashback payments and delayed premium payments to those in financial hardship.

Bupa members will get up to $344 back as part of a refund plan, the third cashback since Covid-19 pandemic hit.

This is how Bupa said it has returned Covid related savings to its members:

*$75 million cashback announced today

*$320 million cashback announced in June 2023

*$154 million six-month freeze on 2023 premiums.

*$315 million cashback announced in September 2022.

*$168 million through a seven-month premium delay for all members in 2022.

*$120 million cashback announced September 2021. $134 million six-month premium freeze announced in March 2020.

*$58 million financial hardship package from 2020. $5 million mental health support package from 2020

Here you can check out what other health funds have done to return cash to their members.

These compensation measures will begin to come to an end next year with funds unlikely to defer their April 1 premium rises in 2024.

CEO of the Australian Private Hospitals Association Michael Roff. Picture: AAP Image

The Australian Private Hospitals Association CEO Michael Roff revealed that since the start of the pandemic until June 30 2023, more than 433,000 anticipated admissions expected in private hospitals did not occur.

And insurers paid out $700 million less for hospital treatments in the year to March 30 2022 and $247 million less for extras like dental and optical, government data showed.

At the same time, as they paid out less, health funds premium income surged by $1.4 billion as they took on new members who were trying to avoid lengthening queues for surgery in overstretched public hospitals.

In the year to 30 June 2023, the industry reported a more than doubling of net profit after tax to $2.2 billion.

Private hospital costs were soaring due to new Covid infection control measures, higher wages in inflation but the amount they were paid by health funds had grown by only 3 per cent Mr Roff said.

“At the end of financial year 2022 only 30 per cent of private hospitals were breaking even or making a surplus, which means 70 per cent were making a loss,” he said.

“We think they should be diverting some of that profitability into increases for private hospitals to make sure they’re still around to treat the insured patients,” Mr Roff said.

Originally published as Almost two million Aussies eligible for up to $344 in cash refunds from Bupa