Love to boogie on down
The Wollongong Arts Precinct has come alive with Spiegeltent Wollongong!
For a limited time Peoplecare members and their family & friends can see VELVET in the Spiegeltent Wollongong for the special price of $50!
It’s the ultimate "fun night out", inspired by the heyday of New York's Studio 54 and featuring an all-star cast, including the legendary diva Marcia Hines.
Visit the box office, call 4224 5999 or book online and quote the promo code STUDIO54.
This offer is only valid for VELVET's Sunday and Public Holiday shows and is for general seating only.
Friday 14th 8.30pm
Sunday 16th 4.30pm & 8.30pm
Tuesday 25th 8.30pm
Sunday 30th 4.30pm & 8.30pm
Peoplecare is the proud partner of Merrigong Theatre Company’s 2017 Young People’s Program.
Premium Changes for 2017
Peoplecare's average premium increase for 2017 is 5.09% and all of our members will be receiving a communication about the new rates via email or post. The new rates come into effect 1 April 2017. This year, there is also a decrease in the Australian Government Rebate. Read our FAQs for more info.
21/02/17
Level up
You’ve heard of the Auscontact Association, right? We didn’t think so, but they represent contact centres in Australia and they’ve just given us level 1 accreditation.
What does that mean? It means that they looked at us against more than 700 international best practice companies and found that we’re ‘world class or beyond’ in 20 of the 29 categories! This means the world to us, because our Peoplecarers work hard every day to give our members brilliant customer service.
But even better than being recognised by the Auscontact Association is getting words like these out of the blue from our members:
“Thank you very much for your high quality service and support! Like many people I was initially reluctant to pay the cost of private health insurance; however in our dealings with Peoplecare it has made some of the hardest and most stressful times of life a little easier. The peace of mind offered by having your service and care to call upon during these situations has been a relief. The little things such as the packs of claim forms and tips prior to hospital stays and a letter asking if everything is okay after an ambulance bill have meant a lot!”
We were left with a serious case of the warm & fuzzies after reading that.
8 December 2016
Supporting local theatre
We love what the arts can do for people – especially young people – so we’re excited to be supporting Merrigong Theatre Company’s 2017 Young People’s Program.
This program gives young people from all walks of life the chance to get involved in performing arts. Merrigong runs school workshops, creativity camps, mixed abilities classes and more. They’ve even got a program called Passport to Performance, which gives students from low socioeconomic schools access to affordable performances.
Why are we getting involved? Because we know that programs like these have loads of benefits for young people. Things like boosting self-confidence, helping with concentration and helping to build more positive thinking.
No matter how old you are, being creative can reduce stress, strengthen the immune system and help with depression & anxiety.
Plus, there are perks for our members! Keep your eyes peeled for discounted tickets and giveaways throughout the 2017 season.
Find out what’s on at merrigong.com.au/merrigong-season.
November 16 2016
Once, Twice, Three times a lady recommended!
We’re proud as punch to have three of our most popular products recommended by CHOICE, the leading consumer advocacy group in Australia!
Our Premium Hospital Cover for families and our Basic Extras Cover were recognised by CHOICE as industry-leading policies that offer superior value to consumers. Our Basic Hospital Cover was also recommended for healthy singles and couples.
This is no small feat, with only 13 out of 25 open health funds having a CHOICE ‘Recommended’ policy this year so we think it’s pretty safe to say we’re delivering on giving our members great value health cover with more of the things you love and less of the things you don’t.
September 1 2016
The results are in...
Were you one of the 2,818 people who did our Member Satisfaction Survey back in February? If you were, thanks! Because the results are in and 97% of you have said you’re happy with us! We’re even happier about that because it’s up from 94% last year, which means our hard work is paying off.
We love a good statistic, and we had some great ones this year:
But don’t worry – we’re not resting on our laurels. After a quick pat on the back, we’re right back into going through your answers to see where we can make even more things better.
Watch this space!
July 13 2016
Have you heard?
From 1 July 2016 Medicare will stop making their rebate payments and PBS (Pharmaceutical Benefit Scheme) refunds by cheque and EFTPOS, which means you’ll need to have your bank account details registered to get your Medicare benefits.
This is happening to make things quicker and easier – payments will go straight into your bank account, which means no more having to line up at a service centre or wait for a cheque to arrive.
Once your details are registered, your Medicare benefits will go straight into your account whether you make your claim at the doctors, in person or online.
If you don’t register your details you might miss out on your Medicare benefits all together, so make sure you do it!
You can register your bank account details with Medicare:
- Online – using your MyGov Medicare online account
- By app – with the Express Plus Medicare mobile app
- By post – by filling in a bank account details form and sending it to:
Centrelink
Reply Paid 7800
Canberra BC ACT 2610
- In person – by dropping off your bank account details form at your closest service centre
- Over the phone – by calling 132 011
3 June 2016
Crunching the numbers
Want to pay your membership in advance? Well throw away that calculator because we've got a handy new tool that does all the work for you. Just pop in the date you want to pay to and it'll tell you exactly what you need to pay. Magic!
Login to Online Member Services now and get calculating. You’ll find it under ‘Calculate your payments’ in the left-hand menu.
2 March 2016
You’re worth it
Let’s face it: healthcare is expensive, and it usually hits you when you least expect it. Going to hospital is stressful enough without having to worry about how much it’s going to cost you. And that’s why we think private health cover is worth it – knowing you’re covered when you really need it.
To give you an idea of what things really cost:
- A double hip replacement – around $70,000
- An intensive care stay – $2,500 a day
- Heart defibrillation (including theatre fees and accommodation) – around $65,000
- Knee reconstruction (not including post-op physio) – $5,000+
Just recently we paid $50,000 in neonatal care for premature twins and $78,000 for a member’s special unit stay after heart surgery.
But it’s not just the cost. Having private hospital cover means you have access to the best medical facilities and treatments available. You can also choose the doctor you’re most comfortable with and you won’t spend months (or more) on the public waiting list if you do have to go to hospital.
Did you know that the average waiting time for heart surgery in a public hospital is 18 days (and 50% of people wait longer)? You could be waiting for 3 months to get your tonsils out, more than 50 days for a hysterectomy, more than 100 days for a hip replacement, around 194 days for a knee replacement (and again 50% of people wait longer) and more than 2 months for prostate surgery.
And what about extras? Knowing you’ll get a benefit back when you visit the dentist might be just the nudge you need to keep going back for those annual check-ups.
If you want to make sure you’re getting the most out of your membership, check out our Peoplecarer’s tips
here.
2 March 2016
Premium Changes for 2016
On the 2nd March 2016 the Minister for Health announced the average industry increase for health insurance premiums this year will be 5.59%. This will come into effect from 1st April 2016. Peoplecare's average premium increase (4.38%) is below the industry average (good news!) and all of our members will be receiving a communication about the new rates via email or post. Read our FAQs for more info.
2 March 2016
Are you our next TV star?
If you could spend $100 on anyone, who would it be? What would you buy them?
We’re looking for fit and fabulous singles (28+), families with little monsters, loved up couples as well as the young at heart (50+) to tell us how they’d spend $100 on camera as part of Peoplecare’s latest health cover campaign.
Send in a quick video answering the above questions along with your contact details to martin@principles.com.au by Tuesday 23 February, 2016.
Successful applicants will then be contacted with further details. If cast, you could feature in a 30 & 15 second television ad, cinema ad, and we might use your picture in a few print ads and some digital placements.
In return, you’ll get that $100 to spend as you please.
Shoot date: Saturday, February 27th, 2016
Location: Millers Point, Sydney
19 February 2016
We're officially the best!
Even if we do say so ourselves. But it's not really us saying it – the latest IPSOS Healthcare and Insurance Australia Report is out and we got top scores for customer satisfaction and loyalty with a Net Promoter Score of 84 (that's almost double the average health fund score of 43!). We also got the highest ranking of open health funds on how we treat members as individuals, not numbers.
The IPSOS report is based on a survey of more than 5,000 Aussies which asked a range of questions about people’s attitudes, satisfaction and behaviour when it comes to the Australian health system and private health insurance. A big shout out to all of our members who took the time to do the survey!
This is the second time in a row we’ve topped the NPS, and we think it’s because of the words we live by – personal is best.
So, next time someone asks you who the best health fund in Australia is (and who doesn't get asked that?), you can tell them it's yours!
Source: IPSOS Health Care & Insurance Australia 2015
18 February 2016
It's a boy!
Meet William - he's the first Peoplecare baby to be born at Ramsay Health Care Group’s latest state-of-the art private hospital, which has just opened its doors in Wollongong.
Why are we so excited about this (apart from the fact that it’s a brand new bub)? Mum and bub received the best possible care and had access to a whole range of specialised maternity services. The hospital boasts world class, all-digital operating theatres, state-of-the-art equipment and a full range of medical and surgical services.
One of the hospital’s fancy new innovations is the Video Nurse Call system. This system gives patients help at the touch of a button - either by answering their question over video or by sending the best person for the job to their bed.
We love making sure we have agreements with most private hospitals in Australia so that our members get access to technology like this, as well as more options for their healthcare as soon as possible.
As for our new mum Kelly and her partner Josh, well they are "over the moon and can’t take our eyes off William. Knowing that we had access to the best care possible including a special care nursery gave us peace of mind right throughout the pregnancy and even now after the birth."
18 February 2016
2015 AGM
We had our Annual General Meeting last month and we’d like to give a big warm welcome to our latest Director Peter Fitzgerald, as well as to Andrew Gregory who’s been re-appointed for another 3 years.
We’d also like to give a special shout out to Alan Gibbs, who retired as a Director after 9 years on our Board. Thanks to Alan for all of his hard work over the years and we wish him all the best for his future endeavours.
This year we also had a special resolution: to change our name. We’re happy to say that it got a lot of support from members and was passed on the night. Don’t worry, it’s not as dramatic as it sounds – we’re now just officially known as Peoplecare Health Limited (instead of Lysaght Peoplecare Limited). We think it suits us!
30 November 2015
Expressions of interest - Board of Directors
Peoplecare will have two Director positions open for election at the 2015 Annual General Meeting as a result of our normal director rotation cycles.
Mr Alan Gibbs, who has been an elected director of Peoplecare for 9 years, is required to retire due to the completion of his current term. Alan has decided not to stand for re-election to the Board at the 2015 AGM.
Mr Andrew Gregory, who has been an elected director of Peoplecare for 3 years, is also required to retire due to the completion of his current term. Andrew has advised the Board that he will stand for re-election at the forthcoming AGM.
The two vacancies that occur due to the completion of Mr Gibbs’ and Mr Gregory’s current terms are therefore available to be filled by eligible qualified persons.
If you are interested in nominating for a position as a director of Lysaght Peoplecare Limited (ABN 95 087 648 753), further details on the process is available on our website at peoplecare.com.au/directorelections.
Expressions of interest for the 2015 Election of Directors must be received by 5:00pm on Friday 4 September 2015.
Peoplecare part of new Primary Health Network
Peoplecare is proud to be a founding member of COORDINARE, the recently formed not-for-profit organisation awarded the tender for the new South Eastern NSW Primary Health Network (PHN). We are joined in this venture by prominent local organisations Grand Pacific Health, the University of Wollongong and IRT. Click here to read our media release.
20 April 2015
Premium Changes for 2015
On the 27th of February the Minister for Health announced the average industry increase for health insurance premiums this year will be 6.18%. This will come into effect from 1 April 2015. Peoplecare's average premium increase is below the industry average (good news!) and all of our members will have received a communication about the new rates via email or post. Read our media release or FAQs for more info.
13 March 2015
Launch of Members Own Health Funds
Peoplecare is proud to announce that it has joined forces with fourteen other not-for-profit and mutual health funds to take on household name funds such as Medibank, AHM, NIB and BUPA. The group, known as Members Own Health Funds, has launched a nationwide public awareness campaign to make sure Australians are aware there are compelling reasons to choose a credible alternative over the large funds. Click here to read our media release.
11 February 2015
Peoplecare named Smart Investor's #1 health fund
The Australian Financial Review’s Smart Investor magazine’s “Australia’s ten best private health funds” article names Peoplecare as the #1 health fund in Australia! We’re thrilled with the result. Click here to read our media release. If you want to read the full article, you can find it here.
8 December 2014
New mobile claiming app!
Forget scanning and emailing your receipts - simply take a photo of your receipt on your smart phone or tablet, open our app, pop in your details and voilà! Your claim is on its way to us in record time.
To download the app click here.
30 November 2014
Annual General Meeting 2014
Notice is hereby given of the sixty first Annual General Meeting of members, to be held at the Chifley Hotel Wollongong, 60-62 Harbour Street, Wollongong at 7pm on Wednesday 12 November 2014.
Agenda
1. Confirmation of minutes of the Annual General Meeting held on 13 November 2013
2. Financial Statements and Reports for the year ending 30 June 2014, including the Auditor’s Report
3. General Business
An electronic version of the 2014 Annual Report is available on our website here.
30 August 2014
Tax statements for 2013/14
Happy New (Financial) Year! For all you early-birds, you can download your tax statements through Online Member Services! It’s super easy to do, but if you’re stuck, we’ve whipped up some instructions. We’ll also have a hard copy in the post to you by 11 July 2014.
1 July 2014
Income tier threshold changes for 2014/15
The income tier thresholds have increased for 2014/15. If you earn over $90,000 (single) or $180,000 (family), check here to make sure you’re on the right rebate tier.
1 June 2014
Rebate changes for 2014
The Australian Government Rebate on Private Health Insurance is changing. From 1 April this year, the rebate you receive will depend on your age, income and inflation (CPI) increases each year. More info will be available once the Government finalises these changed in April and we'll keep you updated here.
24 January 2014
2014 Premium Increase
This morning the Minister for Health announced the premium increases that will apply to health insurance funds from 1 April 2014 with an industry average increase of 6.2%.
Peoplecare's average premium increase is below the industry average (good news!) and we’re in the process of writing letters to all of our members to let them know about the new rates. We can’t quote your new rate just yet as we’re still entering the info into our systems. We’ll pop the new rates on our website as soon as we can, and we'll be mailing all members their new rates in early March 2014.
23 December 2013
2013 AGM & Annual Report
All Peoplecare members are invited to attend our Annual General Meeting (AGM) which will be held at the Chifley Wollongong, 60-62 Harbour Street, Wollongong at 7.00pm on Wednesday 13 November 2013.
If you’re unable to attend the AGM in person but would still like to participate in determining the matters referred for decision, simply complete the proxy form that was recently sent to you and return it to arrive at the Peoplecare office before 5pm on Monday 11 November 2013.
An electronic version of the 2013 Annual Report is available on our website here.
Important update for members with a Lifetime Health Cover loading
As of 1 July 2013, the Australian Government Rebate on Private Health Insurance is only available for the standard membership payment portion of your cover. If you have a LHC loading, this means that you have to pay the full cost of your loading and we’ll be writing to you in the next few days with more info.
2 July 2013
Tax Statements 2012/13
We're mailing out all member tax statements by 13 July. If you need yours earlier, we've put it online so you can view it now. You can access it by logging into your membership.
1 July 2013.
Attention members with a Lifetime Health Cover loading:
It's looking like you'll no longer be able to claim the Government Rebate on the LHC loading portion of your membership payment from 1 July this year. We're still waiting for the Government to confirm the change, and we'll be sending out more info to everyone affected by it soon. (We know, we don't like it either!) For more info check out www.health.gov.au.
Rebate tiers for 2013/14
The new income thresholds have been set for the 2013/14 financial year. If you earn over $88,000 (single) or $176,000 (family), check here to make sure you’re on the right rebate tier.
Love a break
We all love holidays! If you’re thinking about travelling overseas, one of the most important things you need to consider is travel insurance, as your health fund membership doesn’t cover overseas medical services. You may also want to consider travel insurance when travelling within Australia to protect your pre-paid travel arrangements against cancellation, getting sick or having an accident.
Either way, QBE and Peoplecare have a travel insurance policy to suit your needs at discounted prices.
It’s simple to take out a policy by calling us on 1800 808 700 or visiting our website here.
Direct debits
We’ve had a few technical glitches with our direct debit membership payments over the last 3-4 days. We’re doing everything we can to get it fixed as soon as possible and are trying our best to minimise the impact on HICAPS claims. We hope this hasn’t affected many members, but if you have any issues, please give us a buzz on 1800 808 690.
Our brand new optical and dental centre opens on Monday!
Doors to Peoplecare Eyes & Teeth open on Monday 3 December, and we’re all very excited!
Our new centre at 63 Market Street, Wollongong, offers bulk billed eye tests with state-of-the-art optical technology and a range of designer glasses to choose from – all with great eyecare service and competitive prices.
And because we all love convenience, from mid January you’ll be able to keep your teeth healthy at the same time with our brand new dental surgeries. We’ll have the latest technology and well-qualified, experienced dentists to make sure that your teeth get the best care possible.
And if you’ve got Extras cover with Peoplecare, you’ll get*:
- A range of gap-free eyewear
- 25% off our entire range of glasses, contacts and sunglasses (if you can't find something you love in our gap-free range)
- Gap-free preventative dental (this covers consultation, scale & clean, x-rays and fluoride)
- Lower out of pocket costs for other dental services
If you don’t have Extras cover with Peoplecare, don’t worry! You’ll still get 25% off our entire range of glasses, contacts and sunglasses, as well as lower out of pocket costs for dental services.
Of course, you don’t have to be with Peoplecare to visit us. Everyone’s welcome and we’d love to see you there, so drop by 63 Market Street, Wollongong (across the road from the old Ibis Hotel), give us a call on 1300 574 778 or email peoplecareeyesandteeth.com.au.
For more info check out www.peoplecare.com.au/eyesandteeth.
The boring but necessary fine print:
* ‘Gap-free means there are no out of pocket expenses for the member on a selected range of glasses or dental treatments (as long as your annual optical or dental limit hasn’t been used). The range of gap-free glasses will depend on your fund benefit.‘Lower out of pocket costs’ for dental means that the schedule of dental fees are discounted for Peoplecare members. Offer ends 30 June 2013. Not available with any other offer.
Check out our new Pocket Peoplecarer iPhone app!
We're excited to launch our brand new first aid iPhone app, which will give you access to handy first aid info and suggestions for things to take with you when you're out and about.
| You can also: |
- plan an activity
- create a checklist of what to bring along
- share it with a friend by email, Facebook and Twitter
- get weather info
- access emergency services info
|
You can download our free Pocket Peoplecarer app from the iTunes App Store.
Expressions of Interest – Board of Directors
Peoplecare will have two Director positions open for election at the 2012 Annual General Meeting, as a result of our normal director rotation cycles.
Ms Jacqueline Jennings, who has been an elected director of Peoplecare for 3 years, is required to retire due to the ending of her current term. Jacqueline has offered herself for re-election.
Mr Alan Gibbs, who has been an elected director of Peoplecare for 6 years, is required to retire due to the ending of his current term. Alan has offered himself for re-election.
The two vacancies that occur due to the end of Ms Jennings’ and Mr Gibbs’ current terms are therefore available to be filled by any eligible qualified persons and the information provided on this webpage is to assist members to determine if they wish to apply for the vacant elected position.
If you are interested in nominating for this position as a director of Lysaght Peoplecare Ltd (ABN 95 087 648 753) further details on the process are available on our website at www.peoplecare.com.au/agm2012/DirectorElection
Expressions of interest for the 2012 Election of Directors must be received by 5:00pm on Friday 31 August 2012.
Introducing My Health Online!
This is our latest service for members with hospital cover, and we’re all a bit excited. With My Health Online, you can fill in a Health Risk Assessment (which asks you a bunch of questions about your health and gives you a personalised health report), as well as store e-health info about yourself, keep a calendar of healthcare reminders, access a health library and much more. And best of all, it’s free with our hospital cover! For more info check the Your Health section of our website.
Tax Statements 2011/2012
We're mailing out all member tax statements by 16 July. If you need yours earlier, we've put it online so you can view it now. You can access it by logging into your membership.
The Australian Government Rebate on private health insurance
There are some important changes to the Australian Government Rebate on private health insurance that will come into effect from 1 July 2012. We'll be mailing all our members in mid-June as we've just got all the info we need from the ATO.
For more info and to see if it will affect you, click here peoplecare.com.au/rebate. You can nominate your new rebate tier here too.
Pay in advance by 30 June 2012 to lock in your rebate
Our call centre closes at 5pm today, Friday 29 June 2012, but we’ll be working hard in the background to make sure everything is ready to go for the rebate changes on Sunday. So, if you want to pay a year in advance to lock in your current rebate amount – there’s still time! You can pay by credit card through Online Services until 5pm tomorrow. Remember, this is your last chance to pay in advance, on Sunday 1 July the rebate changes will be in full swing and we won’t be able to backdate any payments. If you’ve got any questions drop us a line anytime on our Facebook page, or check out the rebate section on our website http://www.peoplecare.com.au/rebate.
Peoplecare Starts at Home - first aid initiative
Last year we launched our new first aid education initiative, 'Peoplecare Starts at Home'. This program aimed to equip Peoplecare members and the Illawarra and Shoalhaven community with first aid skills for dealing with emergencies. We're thrilled that it was a huge success, so we've decided to run it again between March and June this year.
This year, we're extending the program to include some specialised first aid courses and we'd like to invite you to take part in any of these sessions for free. All sessions are hosted by Peoplecare and facilitated by Wollongong First Aid.
o General First Aid - sessions for adults and children 12 years old and over, covering basic first aid procedures
o First Aid for Kids - designed to educate children (5 - 11 years old) on how to respond to basic emergency situations
o First Aid for New Parents - tailored specially to parents with babies and toddlers
For more info, or if you'd like to register yourself, your family or friends, just go to our online booking system at http://events.peoplecare.com.au.
If you're not in the area, we don't want you to miss out, so:
o all members will also be able to get special discounts on any first aid education and supplies through Wollongong
First Aid www.wollongongfirstaid.com.au
1 March 2012
Changes to the private health insurance rebate
Changes to the private health insurance rebate were passed in the lower house of Parliament on Wednesday 15 February 2012 and will soon be legislation. The changes mean that the private health insurance rebate will be means-tested from 1 July 2012. If you earn under $83K (single) or $166K (family) per year, you won't be affected. We’re working through the details and will be sending all members more info over the coming weeks. Peoplecare will do everything we can to make this transition easy for our members.
More online claiming
Our convenient 24 x 7 online member services has just got even better! As of 1 November 2011, you can now claim for Occupational Therapy & Speech Therapy. To check out the full list of things you can claim for, and to start claiming today, click here.
Annual Report 2011
Our 2011 annual report is ready and you can view it here. If you'd prefer a hard copy version, simply drop us an email at info@peoplecare.com.au and we'll send you one out.
IPSOS Health Insurance Research
During August IPSOS Research will be phoning a random sample of 2,000 of our members to find out what their thoughts are about private health insurance. Just give us a buzz if you’d like to know more!
Social media comp – and the winner is...
Thank you to our wonderful members who have turned out in their hundreds to support our new social media pages. We now have over 1,400 Facebook fans since our launch on 10 June 2011, which is staggering! And the best thing of all is that so many members stopped by to post their personal stories about Peoplecare. We loved hearing from each and every one of you.
Huge congrats to the lucky winner of our Facebook competition. Malcolm Lower of QLD will soon be the proud new owner of an iPad2.
Expressions of Interest – Board of Directors
Peoplecare will have one Director position open for election at the 2011 Annual General Meeting, as a result of our normal director rotation cycles.
Ms Janelle Bond, who has been an elected director of Peoplecare for six years, is required to retire due to the ending of her current term. Janelle has offered herself for re-election.
The vacancy that occurs due to the end of Ms Bond’s current term is therefore available to be filled by any eligible qualified person
If you are interested in nominating for this position as a director of Lysaght Peoplecare Ltd (ABN 95 087 648 753) further details on the process are available on our website.
Expressions of interest for the 2011 Election of Directors must be received by 5:00pm on Friday 26th August 2011.
Tax Statements 2010/2011
We're mailing out all member tax statements by 14 July! If you need yours earlier, you can get one online now by logging into your membership.
Peoplecare takes Facebook by storm
Peoplecare has successfully launched a new Facebook page, achieving the largest Facebook following of all the Australian health funds just a few days after the official launch. This is a significant achievement considering Peoplecare is one of the smaller national health funds.
The Facebook page was launched to Peoplecare members just before close of business on Friday, 10 June 2011 and by the end of the long weekend, Peoplecare had around 1000 ‘fans’ register on the page and over 150 unsolicited wall posts by members sharing their positive experiences of the Illawarra-based national health fund.
‘It just goes to show that we’re in touch with our members in a way that the larger insurers can’t manage,’ said Peoplecare CEO, Michael Bassingthwaighte. ‘We’re all about providing an exceptional service experience with a personal touch and our social media strategy supports this focus 100% by offering members another way to engage with us.’
Peoplecare developed their social media strategy with the aim of creating another communications channel to help their members make sense of the complex health system and to give them access to interesting information about health, first aid and finding their way around the health system. The aim of the Peoplecare Facebook page is to give members a real sense of Peoplecare’s company culture by starting conversations with members.
To see the Peoplecare social media channels, visit facebook.com/Peoplecare, twitter.com/Peoplecare and youtube.com/PeoplecareLovePeople.
Love happy members
We love hearing your feedback on ways we can improve and where you think we’re doing well. And our Member Satisfaction Survey is the perfect tool for you to have your say.
This year, we had 1,355 members fill in our online Member Satisfaction Survey. Thank you to all of you for taking the time to do the survey and helping us improve our services for all of our members! We’ve had another fantastic result this year - a huge 98.0% of you told us that you’re satisfied with Peoplecare! Our staff are thrilled with this result and so proud to offer exceptional service to our members.
The 2011 survey told us what you thought about our communication, telephone service, written service, website service, claims turnaround, benefits, electronic claiming, and other areas you’ve told us are important to you.
We’ve also created a crack special project team to review the survey results and come up with improvement ideas and projects.
This year we’re working on:
- Ways to make our health covers easier to understand
- Giving members more information about our great value for money
- Writing all of our materials in plain English
Of course, you don’t need to wait for a survey to tell us your thoughts, we always love hearing your ideas and feedback, so drop us an email anytime at info@peoplecare.com.au
Lifetime Health Cover deadline - 30 June 2011
If you know anyone who’s 31 or older, and they don’t have hospital cover, let them know that they need to take cover before 1 July, otherwise their premiums will be higher… For more info check out the information on Lifetime Health Cover. Or just give us a buzz on 1800 808 700 if you'd like to chat about it!
Peoplecare Rebrand Wins Global Award
Peoplecare’s recent rebrand has won a merit award in the prestigious 2011 REBRAND 100 Global Awards.
Launched in August last year and developed by leading branding agency Principals, our distinctive new look is fresh, cheeky and personal and stands apart from its competitors in the marketplace.
The REBRAND 100 Global Awards are the highest worldwide recognition a rebranding project can achieve. The Awards are judged by an esteemed panel of international business, marketing and design executives, with the ultimate goal of showcasing the most effective brand transformations to the world.
The 2011 Awards were open to any rebrand launched anywhere in the world between January 2008 and September 2010. The rebrand could have been an enterprise-wide initiative, a single component of a brand, or a brand extension. Global organisations, Fortune 50 corporations, small businesses, accomplished entrepreneurs, respected non-profit organisations, cities, and renowned universities from around the world are regularly represented amongst award winners.
For more info and to check out some before and after shots, click here.
Launch of Peoplecare Starts at Home Initiative
Peoplecare is excited to launch our new first aid education initiative this week.
A recent survey by IRIS Research has shown that 75% of Illawarra residents don’t have an up-to-date first aid qualification and only 1 in 3 people are confident in administering first aid.
To help address this, we’ve launched our Peoplecare Starts at Home program which includes:
For Peoplecare members:
• all Peoplecare members will receive a free First Aid book and emergency contact cards by the end of March
• Illawarra members will be invited to a free first aid education session at 7 locations through the Illawarra and Shoalhaven between March and June 2011.
• all members with Extras cover will be able to claim other accredited first aid courses through their Heath Management benefit
• all members will also be able to get special discounts on any first aid education and supplies through Wollongong First Aid www.wollongongfirstaid.com.au
For the Illawarra community:
We’ve developed free first aid training sessions in conjunction with Wollongong First Aid from March to June 2011.
All community groups who host one of the sessions will receive 10 free First Aid kits and each participant will also receive a Peoplecare First Aid book and emergency contact card.
10 March 2011
Peoplecare scoops the pool in 2010 Illawarra Business Awards!
We're thrilled to be multiple award-winners at the 2010 Illawarra Business Awards on 12 November.
- Winner - Business of the Year 2010
- Winner - Business Person of the Year (Michael Bassingthwaighte, Peoplecare CEO)
- Winner - Professional & Commercial Services
- Highly Commended - Customer Service
- Finalist - Retail & Personal Services
A huge thanks to our heroes, our staff of Peoplecarers, who give everything they've got to make Peoplecare such a success!
A big warm welcome to the new look Peoplecare!
You’ll notice our website looks completely different to our previous website. We’ve decided it’s time for an extreme makeover and we’ve chosen an exciting new look which is distinctive, innovative, stands apart from other health funds and tells the world what we’re all about.
As a member, you already know Peoplecare is about personal service and best possible value for members, and that hasn’t changed. At our very core, we believe personal is best and we wanted our new look to reflect our values:
Love personalised service from real people - We take things personally and we make health insurance personal. We are people who pick up the phone, answer your questions, deal with your question or claim - and love doing it. No voice activated systems. No artificial barriers to communication.
Love making health insurance easier - Health insurance should be easy to join and easy to understand. So we make it easier and better… in the language we use, in the way we design our health covers, in the way we communicate. If you’re not sure how to find your way around the health system, just give us a call – we love helping members!
Love getting better deals and value for money for our members - Our staff know how to get the best deal for you and your family. And our network of partners and suppliers means we get you the best deals and value for money. It’s rare that we can’t beat another fund’s deal, but if that ever happens we’ll say so right up front.
Love being not for profit, so it’s all about our members - We’re proudly not for profit, so we don’t have to pay shareholders or the tax man. Everything we do is for our members and we put everything we’ve got into getting the best member services. The way we see it, we’re all in this together. We’re on your side.
Our new look and feel captures all of this – it’s personal, warm and high energy, just like us! You’ll see that we’ve used pictures that have been lovingly drawn by hand to reflect our ‘personal is best’ philosophy. The stars of our show are our staff and their families, so we’ve featured their photos in our materials. And included some of their stories, so you get to know the real people behind Peoplecare’s success. We’ve got the theme of ‘Love people’ carrying through our communications because our people are all passionate, enthusiastic and love getting the best results for members. And our new colours are warm and vibrant – like the people that work here. So, Peoplecare may have a completely new image, but you’ll be happy to know it’s still us underneath the new look!
Love 24 x 7 service
We’ve revamped our website to go with our new look. Check it out at peoplecare.com.au and let us know what you think. You’ll find it as easy to use as it was before, with even more features.
Our online services are a quick & easy way of dealing with Peoplecare whenever it suits you. It’s easy to self-serve with your online member record. You can:
- join Peoplecare
- look at your membership details
- change your address, level of cover or contact details
- make credit card payments
- look at your recent claims
- find a healthcare provider (hospital, Access Gap doctor or HICAPS provider)
- print your tax statement
- read our online newsletter
- order a new membership card
- organise travel insurance
- choose the best level of cover for you
- get healthy recipes and health information
- online claiming: Dental, Chiro/ Osteo, Physio, Podiatry, Optical (glasses & contacts) & Occupational Therapy -
Love a Family Deal
We’ve got an exciting new deal for members with adult kids between the age of 21 and 25.
At Peoplecare, kids can already stay on the family membership for free until they’re 21 (or 25 if they’re studying full-time).
From 1 July 2010 we’re introducing Family Plus cover so members can keep their adult kids on the membership until they’re 25 for an extra 30% on top of the family rate (as long as they’re not married or living with their partner). And this is a flat rate no matter how many kids you add. A great deal that could save you all money!
As usual, if you’d like to have a chat about this, please feel free to call us on 1800 808 690.
Love spreading the word
Our members love Peoplecare so much that a third of our new members are friends or family who joined because they know we have fantastic deals and personal service.
So, feel free to spread the word to your mates & rellos. After all, we’re all in this together.
To say thanks, if they join we’ll send you both a free $50 Coles Group & Myer Gift Card and put you both into the draw to WIN your choice of 2 prizes valued at $500 or more!*
Joining’s easy through our website peoplecare.com.au or by phone on 1800 808 700. Just tell them to give us your name when they join so you can both get your thank you gifts!
Love a break
We all love holidays! If you’re thinking about travelling overseas, one of the most important things you need to consider is travel insurance, as your health fund membership doesn’t cover overseas medical services. You may also want to consider travel insurance when travelling within Australia to protect your pre-paid travel arrangements against cancellation, getting sick or having an accident.
Either way, QBE and Peoplecare have a travel insurance policy to suit your needs at discounted prices.
It’s simple to take out a policy by calling us on 1 800 808 700 or visiting our website, under Members – Travel Insurance.