What breakups mean for family or couple’s health insurance

Published September 2025 | 5 min read
Expert contributor: Lynette Macks, Head of Membership and Claims Operations, HCF
Words by Angela Tufvesson

Breakups can be tough, but updating your family or couple’s health insurance doesn’t have to be. Here’s what to do and how to keep your personal details secure.

When a relationship ends, whether amicably or under difficult circumstances, there’s often a long list of practical matters to manage. Updating your private health insurance might not be the first thing on your mind, but it’s an important step to make sure your cover reflects your new circumstances.

If you’re navigating a challenging or unsafe separation, updating your private health cover can give you peace of mind that your personal information – and possibly that of your children – will be kept safe and remain private. You can also make sure your cover stays active so there are no breaks in your coverage.

To help make this process as smooth as possible, Lynette Macks, HCF’s Head of Membership and Claims Operations, answers some of the most common questions about updating your private health cover after a relationship breakdown.

What happens to your health insurance after the relationship ends?

Every private health insurance policy has a nominated primary policyholder – someone who gets emails and other communication from the insurer, manages payments and is generally the first point of contact.

When a relationship breaks down, what typically happens is the primary policyholder continues with the existing policy. They may make changes to the policy, like removing the secondary adult from the policy and shifting to a single parent health cover or a singles policy, but it remains in their name.

The secondary adult can then take out their own separate single policy. “This is what we encourage them to do,” Lynette explains. “This means they maintain continuity and won't lose any benefits or loyalty. They can just carry on like they always have, but on their own membership.”

How do private health insurers deal with personal information?

If you’re in a situation where there’s family or domestic violence, or you’re going through other challenges during your separation, you can make changes to your HCF policy to keep your personal information safe.

As the primary policyholder, you have the right to remove the other person from the membership, including if you have a family membership. If you’re the secondary adult, you can remove yourself and take out your own policy. Once this happens, the other person will not have access to your policy – or any new personal information you give HCF after you've removed the secondary adult or taken out your own policy.

“The other person can contact us to receive details about the dates of their cover, but they won't be able to access any new information, such as if you change your address or phone number,” says Lynette.

If you tell us you’re vulnerable, we'll look at how else we can help you based on your individual circumstances. We'll continue to protect your right to privacy and handle any information you provide us in accordance with the HCF Privacy Policy.

Will children still be covered if you cancel family private health cover?

Lynette recommends one parent takes out single parent health cover for themselves and the children, and the other parent takes out a single policy.

“Generally speaking, you shouldn’t have the children covered on two separate policies. We can do it, but we don’t encourage it because then they're double insured,” says Lynette.

If you have single parent health cover, you can authorise for the other parent to have access to the membership to assist with queries and claiming for children’s appointments. You can also tell us if you don’t want the other parent to have access to your children’s cover. “This means we can’t tell them anything about your children’s cover,” says Lynette.

Do you need to tell your health insurer when your relationship ends?

In most situations, it makes sense to do this as you’ll likely transition to two policies. But it depends on your personal circumstances.

“Situations will all differ, and it’s a good idea to also check on this with your tax accountant, as well as make sure the cover is suitable for everybody's health needs,” says Lynette.

 Will the Medicare Levy Surcharge still apply?

The Medicare Levy Surcharge is based on your individual income and whether you have hospital cover. “It doesn’t matter if you choose to remain on the same membership or take out separate memberships – as long as you stay on an appropriate hospital cover for the entire financial year, no-one has to pay the Medicare Levy Surcharge,” explains Lynette.

Where it can get tricky is if one person removes the other from a membership without their knowledge. “There can be situations where people are unaware that they're not covered anymore,” says Lynette. “If you’re not the primary policyholder and there's a relationship breakup, it’s best to call us and double-check what your options are.”

What’s the potential impact on Lifetime Health Cover loading?

When you’re covered under a family or couples policy, any Lifetime Health Cover loadings are averaged across the adults on the policy. This can reduce the impact of a higher loading if one person has a lower loading or no loading. If you move to single policies after a separation, each person’s individual Lifetime Health Cover loading will apply in full.

“This means that if one person has 0% loading and one person has 50%, the person with the 50% loading would now pay the full amount on their single policy, whereas previously the policy would have had an average of 25% loading,” Lynette explains.

Do waiting periods and discounts change when you switch policies?

If you move from a shared policy to another HCF membership on the same level of cover or higher within 30 days, you’ll have full continuity and won’t need to re-serve any waiting periods for benefits previously covered under your shared policy. “If the break from being covered is longer than 30 days, you would need to re-serve the waiting period you've already served – but that's also where we would encourage a member to talk to us about their options depending on their circumstances,” Lynette explains.

For corporate discounts on memberships, you’ll generally keep the discount if it’s tied to your employer. The other person would lose the discount unless they were eligible independently.

Do you need mental health support?

Relationship breakdowns can be a challenging time. We offer a comprehensive range of wellbeing programs to support your mental health.

Eligible members can get a free annual HealthyMinds Check-in^*, which is a telehealth consultation with a psychologist, who can offer tailored support and guide you towards a mental health plan or other helpful resources.

Plus, eligible members have free access to Calm Kid Central^{^}, an interactive online program that teaches children aged four to 11 the skills they need to meet challenges and manage tough life situations – and also supports parents and caregivers.

If you’re impacted by domestic or family violence, you can reach out to 1800RESPECT for confidential support.

We're here for you

Relationship breakdowns are challenging enough without having to worry about your private health cover, but we’re here to help you understand your options. Visit our website to find out how we support vulnerable members (plus learn more about how we keep your information safe) or give our friendly team a call on 13 13 34 to discuss your needs.