What’s a Private Health Information Statement (PHIS)?
Your Private Health Information Statement (PHIS) is a high-level overview of the health cover you’ve selected.
It outlines the key features of your cover and the general waiting periods.
When you first join us, or if you change your level of cover, we send you access to your Private Health Insurance Statement. It’s commonly called a PHIS (fizz!) and it’s got lots of details that are important for you to check in on.
So, what’s a PHIS and why do I need it?
The PHIS is designed to help you understand what’s covered by your policy and to help you to be able to compare it easily with others available across the market.
It’s a standardised government template to ‘explain’ your health cover.
Every PHIS for any private health insurance policy in Australia can be found and compared on the privatehealth.gov.au website.
So, if you’ve got Hospital or Extras cover (or both), you’ll be able to look at yours to make sure the cover you have is still the right one for you.
What your PHIS will tell you
This is the info you’ll be able to find in your PHIS:
- Any inclusions, restrictions and exclusions on your Hospital cover.
- Your excess amount (if you need to go to hospital).
- Waiting periods for the cover (but not if you’ve served them or not).
- Whether your cover may exempt you from paying the Medicare Levy Surcharge.
- What’s covered by your Extras cover and some examples of the benefits.
- Any inclusions on your Extras cover, and some examples of benefits.
What you won’t find in your PHIS
PHIS documents are a standard government template, so they don’t go into the whole detail of your specific cover as it relates to being a member of RT Health.
For the best view of your cover and what’s included, read your PHIS in conjunction with your RT Health cover guide(s) and current Annual Policy Statement (you’ll be able to access this at the same time as your PHIS each year).
The following info isn’t available on the PHIS.
- Your actual (net) premium. Keep in mind that the premiums outlined in PHIS documents are general and don’t consider your personal circumstances (like where you live, any LHC loading you need to pay, any Australian Government Rebate on Private Health Insurance you claim or any discounts you receive).
- How you pay and how often you pay (e.g., monthly, quarterly, yearly).
- Who’s covered by your membership.
- The level of government rebate you’re claiming (if any).
- If you have any Lifetime Health Cover loading.
We’re here to help
We’re always here to help if you need a hand. We can talk you through your PHIS, or help you make sure the cover you’re on is the one that’s best for you.
Just call our friendly team us on 1300 886 123 (Monday to Friday, 8:30am-5:00pm AEDT/AEST) or reach out via email to help@rthealth.com.au