Critical Illness

A one-off payment when you need it most

Critical Illness is extra cover you can have alongside your Southern Cross health insurance plan (excluding HealthEssentials). It can provide you with additional support over and above your health insurance cover through a one-off payment if you have a confirmed diagnosis of a critical illness or trauma event. You’ll need a Southern Cross Health Insurance plan (excluding HealthEssentials) to add a Critical Illness policy.

If you’d like one-off payment cover for only cancer, consider looking at our Cancer Assist plan.

Choose your cover level up to $300,000

You can choose your level of cover: $20,000, $50,000, $100,000, $200,000, and $300,000.

If you have a confirmed diagnosis of a critical illness event, such as a heart attack, stroke, qualifying cancer, paralysis, organ failure or loss of independent living1, you’ll receive the amount you have chosen as a tax-free one-off payment to spend on what’s important to you. At what is undoubtedly a stressful time, you can use your Critical Illness payment to help take care of you and your family so you can focus on recovery.

Please read the policy document for more information on what is (and isn’t) covered.

A confirmed diagnosis must meet the diagnosis criteria as defined in the policy document. Eligibility criteria, policy terms and conditions, including exclusions apply.

It’s up to you how you use your payment

Critical Illness is designed to give you and your family money and options when you need it most. Some examples of how this lump sum payment could be used.

Recovery and healthcare treatments

Pay for additional or alternative treatments and rehabilitation that may not be covered by the public healthcare system or your health insurance plan, like new cancer drugs.

Family support

Use the payment so partners or family members can be there, especially for a child diagnosed with a critical illness or cancer.

Staying on top of bills

Help with household expenses like mortgage payments or rent and credit card payments.

Taking time off

Reduce or remove the pressure of needing to work.

Travel costs

Help with flight or petrol costs if you need to travel for treatment.

Important to know

You can purchase a Critical Illness policy if you have (and keep) a Southern Cross health insurance policy (this cannot be HealthEssentials).
If you have a Critical Illness policy, you cannot have a Cancer Assist policy at the same time.
A 3-month stand-down applies to claims from the start date of your Critical Illness policy and you must survive for 14-days after your confirmed critical illness diagnosis. This period of 14 days will be increased by 1 day for every day you’re kept alive on a life support system.
All members on the same Critical Illness policy will have the same maximum level of cover except for those turning 65 whose maximum level of cover automatically reduces to $20,000 on the policy anniversary date after their 65th birthday.
On the policy anniversary date following an insured’s 65th birthday, the eligible critical illness events available for them to claim under are limited to cancer, loss of independent living as a direct result of an accident and functional loss as a direct result of an accident.
Children can be added to a Critical Illness policy at any time up to the age of 21, but there must be an adult on the policy as well. For larger families with three children or more under the age of 21 years, you’ll only pay for the first two children2 and any additional children on your policy will be included at no additional charge.
You can only be on one Critical Illness policy at any time, and you can only claim once on that policy. After claiming on a Critical Illness policy, if you want further cover for critical illness you will need to complete a new application and provide details of your medical history. We will use this to decide what cover we’re able to provide and what exclusions will apply to your new policy.
There’s a 14 day no-obligation period after purchase where, if you want to cancel, you’ll get a 100% refund of any premiums paid.