$100 gift card when you switch*
Premiums went up 4.41% this year — the biggest rise since 2017 — and the extra rebate for over-65s is proposed to be cut from April 2027, subject to legislation. Starts at 60's free comparison service checks 600+ policy options from 8 health funds and tells you straight: switch and save, or stay right where you are.
4.8 out of 5 from 250+ Google reviews
We built this service with Comparify — an Australian health insurance comparison specialist that has helped thousands of people find better-value cover — because our members kept telling us the same thing: "I just want an honest comparison, without the hype."
One comparison across the big names and the smaller not-for-profit funds you may never have heard of.
Comparify is paid by the fund if you switch — never by you. You pay exactly what you'd pay going direct, guaranteed by the Comparify Price Promise.
Melbourne-based, an average of seven years in Australian health insurance, and you get their direct number.
From more than 250 verified Google reviews.
Around one in three people we speak to are told their current cover is still the best fit. If that's you, we'll say so.
Your comparison journey
Three simple steps. No jargon, no paperwork, no pressure.
Step 1
A handful of quick questions — who the cover is for, where you live, what you've got now. About two minutes. You don't need your policy documents.
Step 2
A Comparify advisor compares 600+ policy options from 8 health funds against what you actually need at this stage of life — knees, cataracts, hearing, dental — not what pays the biggest commission.
Step 3
We walk you through it on the phone. If you switch, we handle the paperwork with your new fund and your waiting periods carry across. If you're better off staying, we'll tell you that too.
Breadth, not just whoever pays the most. From the big names to the not-for-profit funds that return more of your premium in benefits.
Health cover works a little differently once you're past 60 — mostly in your favour, and in one case, not.
Today the rebate steps up at 65 and again at 70. From 1 April 2027 the Government has proposed removing that age-based extra, subject to legislation. If it passes, the same policy could cost more for exactly the same cover. If you're over 65, it's a good reason to check you're on the right policy.
See what it means for meHealth insurance in Australia is community rated. Your age and your health history can't be used to price you differently, exclude you, or refuse you. That protection is the reason switching is far less risky than most people over 60 assume.
If you've held hospital cover continuously for 10 years since you first took it out, any Lifetime Health Cover loading has been removed for good — and some people are still paying a premium quoted before that happened. It's a two-minute check, and we'll do it on the call.
Comparify's advisors are based in Melbourne, have an average of seven years' experience in Australian health insurance, and give you their direct number — so the person you speak to first is the person you speak to next time. Their average customer is 63, which means they talk about hips, cataracts and hearing aids all day. No offshore call centre. No script.
They'll tell you when a cheaper policy is a worse policy — and they're not paid more for putting you with one fund over another.
The five things long-time members worry about — and what the law actually says.
Waiting periods you've already served must be recognised by your new fund for anything covered at the same or a lower level.
Protected by lawYou only re-serve a waiting period on a genuine upgrade — 12 months for pre-existing conditions on newly added categories, two months for most others.
Your Lifetime Health Cover status travels with you. Switching never resets or increases it.
Protected by lawExtras limits reset on the new policy's cycle, so timing a switch after a big dental or optical claim is worth a moment's thought.
We confirm your private hospital is in the new fund's agreement network before anything is signed.
Protected by lawTwo minutes of questions, one 15-minute call, and an honest answer. Free, no obligation, and a $100 gift card if you switch.*
No. Health insurance in Australia is community rated, so a fund cannot charge you more or refuse you cover because of your age or health. What changes with age is the government rebate: today it steps up at 65 and again at 70, which lowers what you pay. The Government has proposed removing that age-based increase from 1 April 2027, subject to legislation. If it passes, the same policy could cost more for people aged 65 and over.
It depends on what you want protected. Gold is the only tier that must cover joint replacements, cataract surgery, dialysis and weight-loss surgery — the procedures most likely to matter after 60. If those are on your radar, Gold is usually the honest answer. If they are not, Silver Plus can cover almost everything else for meaningfully less.
Not for anything you're already covered for at the same or a lower level. Funds must recognise the waiting periods you've already served. You only serve new waiting periods on benefits you're upgrading into — for example moving from Silver to Gold for joint replacements.
If you held hospital cover continuously for 10 years after first taking it out, any LHC loading is removed permanently. If you still carry a loading, it moves with you when you switch funds — switching neither adds to it nor resets it.
Your specialist choice comes from having hospital cover at the right tier, not from the fund. What can change is which private hospitals have an agreement with your new fund. We check your hospital before you switch — it takes us one call.
Look at what you actually claimed last year. If your dental, optical and physio claims are less than what extras cost you, a leaner extras policy or none at all can be the right call. We'll show you the numbers rather than talk you into a bundle.
If you're a Starts at 60 member and you switch to a new hospital and extras policy through this service, you'll receive a $100 gift card once your new policy is confirmed. Full terms and conditions, including timing and eligibility, are on our offer terms page.
No. Starts at 60 doesn't arrange, issue or advise on health insurance. The comparison service on this site is provided by Comparify (ABN 78 665 886 644), a member of the Private Health Insurance Intermediaries Code of Conduct. Comparify's advisors compare the funds and handle any application you choose to make — and Starts at 60 is paid a referral fee by Comparify if you switch, which never changes the price you pay.
Comparison service provided by Comparify, a PHII Code member. See the footer for full details.
