Fix Private Health Insurance for Older Australians – Add Your Voice
27 Aug 2026
Many older Australians have paid private health insurance premiums for decades. Now, just as they are more likely to need health care, they face high, unpredictable costs, no assurance their cover is giving them fair value, and a Government proposal to cut the age-based rebate that helps keep their cover affordable.
COTA Australia are inviting older Australians to sign a petition that adds their voice to fix private health insurance for older Australians. Please take the time to read the petition proposition below and if you would like to take action, visit the COTA Australia website to sign the petition.
PETITION
To: The Hon. Mark Butler MP, Minister for Health and Ageing.
Many older Australians have paid private health insurance premiums for decades. Now, just as they are more likely to need health care, they face high, unpredictable costs, no assurance their cover is giving them fair value, and a Government proposal to cut the age-based rebate that helps keep their cover affordable.
We call on the Australian Government to make private health insurance fairer for older Australians by:
- not proceeding with cuts to the age-based rebate,
- requiring insurers to return a mandated share of premiums as real benefits each year,
- requiring upfront clarity on specialist fees so older Australians know what they will pay before they need health care, and
- ensuring the current private health insurance reform process puts consumers first, especially older people on fixed and modest incomes who are most exposed to rising health costs.
Older Australians deserve to know that decades of premiums will actually protect them and deliver real value when they need health care, not leave them with confusion and bill shock.