Hospital cover · November 2026
The cheapest health insurance that avoids the Medicare levy surcharge
Earn more than $105,000 without hospital cover and the surcharge is at least $1,050 a year. The cheapest cover that avoids it costs $396 to $1,037 a year for one adult, depending on the state. In every state that is less than the surcharge.
State by state, for one adult
The cheapest hospital policy from a fund anyone can join that counts for the surcharge. A year’s cost is after the 16.1% rebate, with no Lifetime Health Cover loading. Each state’s page has the ten cheapest, the cheapest at each tier, and couples and families.
| State | Cheapest policy | A month | A year after rebate |
|---|---|---|---|
| NSW | ahm ambulance hospital (basic) | $102.60 | $1,033 |
| VIC | ahm ambulance hospital (basic) | $102.10 | $1,028 |
| QLD | see-u Starter Hospital $750 Excess with Daily Co-Pay (Basic) | $102.99 | $1,037 |
| WA | see-u Starter Hospital $750 Excess with Daily Co-Pay (Basic) | $78.86 | $794 |
| SA | see-u Starter Hospital $750 Excess with Daily Co-Pay (Basic) | $98.81 | $995 |
| TAS | HBF Basic Hospital Accident Only $750/$1500 Excess | $100.42 | $1,011 |
| NT | ahm ambulance hospital (basic) | $39.30 | $396 |
The surcharge on $110,000 is $1,100. Prices in the ACT follow NSW.
Cheapest is not the same as worth having.
These policies avoid a tax. Most cover little else. The calculator works out your own surcharge and loading from your income and age, then finds the cheapest policy that covers the treatments you pick.
Work out mine →What the surcharge costs
The Medicare Levy Surcharge for 2026-27, on top of the 2% Medicare levy. Income here means taxable income plus reportable fringe benefits, reportable super contributions and net investment losses. The family thresholds rise by $1,500 for each child after the first.
| One adult | Couple or family | Surcharge |
|---|---|---|
| $105,001 to $123,000 | $210,001 to $246,000 | 1% |
| $123,001 to $164,000 | $246,001 to $328,000 | 1.25% |
| Over $164,000 | Over $328,000 | 1.5% |
Pay the surcharge, or buy the cover?
For one adult the answer is arithmetic. The surcharge is a share of your whole income, so it grows as you earn more. The cheapest cover is a flat price. Once the cover costs less than the surcharge, holding it leaves you ahead before you claim anything.
For a couple or family the surcharge applies above $210,000 of combined income, and both adults pay it on their own income, so cover needs to be compared with the two surcharges added together.
To count, hospital cover must have an excess of no more than $750 for one adult or $1,500 for a couple or family. Extras cover on its own does not count, and has no effect on the surcharge or on the Lifetime Health Cover loading. Whether extras is worth holding is a separate sum, and the extras calculator does it.
Worked from the Australian Government’s Private Health Open Listing, 01-Nov-2026, with the same sums as the hospital calculator. Surcharge thresholds and rebate rates are the Australian Taxation Office’s for 2026-27. Restricted funds and corporate products are left out. How the sums work.
This is general information, not personal financial or tax advice. Confirm the premium, the excess and what is covered with the fund before you buy. Independent of every fund listed · No affiliate fees, no commissions.