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Best restricted membership health insurance funds

Despite their name, restricted health funds may be more open than you think.
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Checked for accuracy by our qualified fact-checkers and verifiers. Find out more about fact-checking at CHOICE

Last updated: 29 May 2023
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Restricted membership health funds offer private health insurance for people who work in particular industries. They often let immediate and extended family members join too, and you don’t necessarily need to be currently working in the industry.

They usually offer good policies at a lower premium than open membership funds (regular health funds), especially if you’re after Gold cover with no or low excess.

Who can join a restricted health fund?

Restricted funds cater to customers in specific industry groups, such as teachers, police, the military, or medicine. The Commonwealth Bank Group also has a fund for its staff. Depending on the fund, you can become a member even if you’re no longer in the relevant profession.

Some of these funds are also generous with family memberships. For most funds, if you qualify for membership, then so do your parents, partner, children (even if they’re grown), children’s partners, grandchildren, siblings, and siblings’ partners and children.

Once you sign up, you’re allowed to stay a member if your circumstances change. This means that the fund won’t boot you even if your sibling quits being a teacher, or your relationship with your doctor partner ends.

If you or a family member have ever been employed in one of the following industries you may be eligible for a restricted membership health fund:

  • Defence
  • Education
  • Health
  • Police and emergency
  • Banking
  • Member of any union.

If you can access a restricted fund, it’s at least worth considering. Especially if you’re interested in a Gold policy as the restricted fund policies we recommend offer the same level of cover as open funds, often at a lower premium.

Read more:
What to know before you buy health insurance

What are the restricted health funds in Australia?

There are 11 restricted health insurers in Australia, listed below. You can also select the insurer name to read more about each insurer, member eligibility, and how we rate them for complaints and gap cover.

  • ACA Health Benefits Fund: Current or former Seventh-day Adventist Church employees (including SDA-affiliated companies) 
  • CBHS Health Fund: Current or former employees, contractors and franchisees of Commonwealth Bank Group 
  • Defence Health: Current or former members of the ADF, reservists, civilian employees of Department of Defence (or related departments), employees of Defence contractors 
  • Doctors’ Health Fund: Current or former doctors and health practitioners, their employees, and medical students
  • Emergency Services Health: Current or former employees or volunteers in fire, ambulance, medical, water, state emergency response and recovery services, and their related unions or associations.
  • Navy Health: Current or former Australian Defence Force service personnel, civilian employees and contractors
  • Nurses & Midwives Health: Current or former people in nursing and midwifery professions, including students and assistants, with membership in a nurses union.
  • Police Health: Current or former federal, state and territory police or police union employees, and police employees who retired after 2000 
  • Reserve Bank Health Society: Current or former employees of the Reserve Bank of Australia or Note Printing Australia.
  • Teachers Health Fund and UniHealth: Current or former teachers and academics (primary to tertiary), teacher aides or non-teaching support staff, with membership in their relevant union 
  • TUH Health Fund and Union Health: Current or former members of any union
Uta

I've been at CHOICE for over 20 years, starting as a research assistant and nowadays a senior content producer in the money and travel team. I am originally from Germany and my background is in journalism; I started in my teens at my local paper and then studied journalism in Germany and Australia. I hold a Master in History and Politics from the Technical University of Berlin, a Graduate Certificate in Journalism from UTS and a Certificate IV in Financial Advising from the Securities Institute in Sydney. Over the years I have worked on all types of financial topics – from credit cards to reverse mortgages and kids bank accounts. My main interest and expertise is in health insurance and I am member of the government health insurance website reference group of the Commonwealth Ombudsman.    I love working at CHOICE because I feel that we can make a real difference helping consumers to get a fair go. You can find me on Twitter and LinkedIn.

I've been at CHOICE for over 20 years, starting as a research assistant and nowadays a senior content producer in the money and travel team. I am originally from Germany and my background is in journalism; I started in my teens at my local paper and then studied journalism in Germany and Australia. I hold a Master in History and Politics from the Technical University of Berlin, a Graduate Certificate in Journalism from UTS and a Certificate IV in Financial Advising from the Securities Institute in Sydney. Over the years I have worked on all types of financial topics – from credit cards to reverse mortgages and kids bank accounts. My main interest and expertise is in health insurance and I am member of the government health insurance website reference group of the Commonwealth Ombudsman.    I love working at CHOICE because I feel that we can make a real difference helping consumers to get a fair go. You can find me on Twitter and LinkedIn.

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