Central West

Welcome to the Central West Health Cover website! We have created this website for the information of our Members. There are, however, a few important rules governing its use which you should read carefully.

By accessing and using this website, you agree to be bound by the following terms and conditions of use (‘Terms of use”), which constitute a legal agreement between you and Central West Health Cover. Do not use this website if you do not agree to these terms of use.

The Terms of Use include our Privacy Policy and any additional terms outlined elsewhere on this website.

First, for some legal introductions. Any reference to "Central West Health Cover", "we", "us", “Central West” or "our" in these Terms of Use is a reference to Healthguard Health Benefits Fund Limited ABN 26 054 321 274 which is a health benefits organisation under the National Health Act carrying on business as Central West Health Cover and under other business names.

We may change these Terms of Use at our discretion without notice. Your continued use of this website after any such changes constitutes your acceptance of the new Terms of Use. We will make reasonable efforts to bring any changes to the attention of our users, but you should also check this page regularly to familiarise yourself with any updates.

These Terms of Use apply exclusively to your access to, and use of, this website and do not alter in any way the terms or conditions of any other agreement you may have with us for products, services or otherwise.

If you become aware of any use of our site that you think is not complying with these Terms of Use, please contact us.

This website is provided for personal, non-commercial use only. Unless otherwise agreed with us in writing, you must not make any use of this website for commercial gain. You may not mirror any part of this website, unless expressly agreed with Central West Health Cover.

If you have any questions about advertising on our website, or the commercial use of any of the services we provide, please contact us on 133 206.

The privacy of all information regarding our Members and website users is of utmost importance to us. For information about our collection and use of information in connection with this website, please read our Privacy Policy.

If you specifically and knowingly provide any personal information to us via this website, you consent to Central West Health Cover using that personal information lawfully at its sole and absolute discretion, including for the purposes of providing promotional and marketing materials by other means. You must obtain the consent of any third person whose personal information you post to this website.

This website and its content are provided "as is" and without any express or implied warranties of any kind, including implied warranties of title or implied warranties of merchantability, satisfactory quality or fitness for any particular purpose.

While Central West Health Cover uses all reasonable efforts to ensure the accuracy, correctness and reliability of our website and its content, we do not represent that our website or its content will be error-free or warrant the accuracy or suitability of the information or links provided on the website.

Central West Health Cover excludes, to the maximum extent permitted by law:

You specifically agree that Central West Health Cover shall not be responsible or liable for:

Certain content displayed on this website may be sourced from, and certain links on or from this website may lead to, sites and resources located on servers maintained by others over whom we have no control. We make no representation as to, and accept no liability for, the use of such content or such links or the accuracy or any other aspects of that content or the information.

If you have any complaints about the website or its content, please contact us by calling 133 206. We will make all reasonable efforts to address your complaint and, if appropriate, will arrange for the content in question to be removed or revised.

Following recent changes to the law in Australia, members of the public may now also complain to the Australian Broadcasting Authority about Internet content which is, or may be, prohibited by law. The posting of such material on our website is strictly prohibited. The transmission of such material using services available on our website is also strictly prohibited.

However, if you become aware of any Internet content which is, or may be prohibited by law, you may lodge a complaint with the ABA. Details regarding how to make a complaint can be found on the ABA website at: http://www.aba.gov.au/what/online/complaints.htm.

Alternatively, you can contact:
The Manager Online Services Content Regulation
Australian Broadcasting Authority
GPO Box Q500, Queen Victoria Building, NSW, 1230
FAX: (02) 9334 7783
Email: online@aba.gov.au

Central West Health Cover Intellectual Property

Unless otherwise indicated, Central West Health Cover owns the copyright in the content on this website. Some of the copyright in the content may be owned by someone else and if so, is included on our website under a licence or agreement.

You may only access and use the content for non-commercial or personal use unless you have prior written approval from us. You may print out any content on this website for your personal use. All other use, copying or reproduction of this website or any part of it is prohibited (except to the extent permitted by law). None of the content or any part of it may be reproduced on any other Internet website.

If you seek to reproduce or otherwise use the content in any way it is your responsibility to obtain consent for such use. Central West Health Cover uses the logo which appears in this web site. Use of that logo by others without written consent is prohibited.

Waiver of Legal Right

If you breach any of these Terms of Use, and Central West Health Cover has knowledge of that breach, a failure to pursue legal action or to enforce any remedy against you will not constitute a waiver of Central West Health Cover's legal rights.

Any waiver of these Terms of Use will only be effective if it is in writing and signed by Central West Health Cover.

Linking to this Website

You may link to our website for non-commercial personal use. If you are interested in linking to our website for commercial purposes, or becoming otherwise affiliated with Central West Health Cover, please contact us on 133 206.

Any linking for commercial purposes may only be done with our express agreement.

Unless expressly stated to the contrary, these Terms of Use are governed by the laws of New South Wales. You submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of courts exercising jurisdiction there, in connection with matters concerning this agreement.

Central West Health Cover has the right to commence and prosecute any action or proceeding before any court of competent jurisdiction to obtain injunctive or other relief if Central West Health Cover considers (in its discretion) that such action is necessary or desirable.

In the event that any of these Terms of Use are invalid, those invalid Terms of Use shall be excised and the remaining provisions shall remain in full force and effect.

Version Information

These Terms of Use are Version 1.0, and were last updated in February 2005.

This policy applies to HealthGuard Health Benefits Limited trading as Central West Health Cover (“Central West Health”).

At Central West Health, we respect the privacy of your personal information. We process personal details on a daily basis and are committed to ensuring that the privacy and security of personal information remains protected. We are bound by the National Privacy Principles (NPPs) set out in the Privacy Act 1988.

The way Central West Health manages your personal information depends on the nature of your relationship with Central West Health, and which of Central West Health's products and services you access. Further information about the way we manage personal information in the context of health insurance offered by Central West Health is set out in the schedule.

The NPPs, and accordingly this Policy, do not apply to information about Central West Health's past and present employees which directly relates to that employment relationship.

Information we hold

Central West Health collects, stores and uses personal information for a variety of purposes.

Generally, we will collect your personal information during a face-to-face interview, over the telephone, through an online form or by way of a paper based form (including application forms). From time to time additional and/or updated personal information may be collected through one or more of these methods.

Usually we will hold details of your name, address, age, telephone number, and in some cases other contact details such as a facsimile number, post office box number and/or email address. We often hold information which relates to how you choose to pay for products and services (particularly where we have a regular direct debit arrangement), which may include bank account details and credit card details. If payments are made under a payroll deduction scheme, we may hold information about your employer. We also keep information about payment history.

Some personal information is deemed to be sensitive information. Central West Health will treat sensitive information with particular care.

We also collect personal information about individuals who are, or are employed by, our suppliers, consultants, advisers, service providers and government agencies. Generally, if appropriate, we will tell you why we are collecting personal information when we collect it and how we plan to use it, or these things will be obvious when we collect the information.

In the schedule, we summarise the other types of information we are likely to hold about you.

Central West Health's use and disclosure of personal information

Central West Health uses personal information it collects and maintains about you to provide you with comprehensive service in relation to its products and services. We make some particular comments about our use and disclosure of information in the context of health insurance, in the schedule.

Generally, Central West Health may disclose information:

to governmental agencies or other regulatory bodies to assess our compliance with the law and the NPPs.

Where permitted under the Privacy Act, Central West Health may share personal information with its related companies.

Central West Health may use your personal information for the purpose of providing you with material such as articles and information about other Central West Health products and services that may be of interest to you. However, you may request not to receive such information by contacting us and we will give effect to that request. Please allow five working days for your request to be actioned.

If you make a claim in relation to health insurance, Central West Health may need to collect sensitive information from third parties about the matter. When you make the claim you consent to Central West Health collecting related sensitive information directly from those third parties or, if the information relates to a dependant of yours who is a child, you give consent on behalf of that child.

Document storage, security policies and practices

We regard the security and integrity of your personal information as a priority, and will at all times seek to ensure that the personal information collected and held by us is protected from misuse, loss, unauthorised access, modification or disclosure. Central West Health maintains technology, processes and procedures no less than industry standard for the purposes of ensuring the quality and security of your personal information.

If you cease to hold any products issued by Central West Health, any personal information which we hold about you will be maintained for a period of 7 years (except in the case of health insurance personal information for children, which will be held at least until the person turns 25) in order to comply with legislative and professional requirements. After this time the information will be destroyed.

Information about the use of our website and electronic exchanges

You are not required to provide us with any personal information when visiting our website. However, sometimes we need to collect your information from our website to provide services that you request. For example, if you wish to fill out paperwork online or if you send us an online query.

When you visit our website, or download information from it, our Internet Service Provider makes a record of your visit and records the following information: your internet address, your domain name if applicable, the date and time of your visit to the website, the pages you accessed and documents downloaded, the previous website you have visited and the type of browser you are using. This information is only used for statistical and website development purposes.

We make limited use of cookies on our website. We only use cookies to improve the functionality of our website, not to store any of your personal information.

A cookie is a small message given to your web browser by our web server. The browser stores the message in a text file, and the message is then sent back to the server each time the browser requests a page from the server.

When cookies are used on our website, they are used to store information relating to your visit such as a unique identifier, or a value to indicate whether you have seen a web page. They are used to distinguish your Internet Browser from the thousands of other browsers. Our website will not store personal information such as an email address or other details in a cookie.

Most Internet browsers are set up to accept cookies. If you do not wish to receive cookies, you may be able to change the settings of your browser to refuse all cookies or to notify you each time a cookie is sent to your computer, giving you the choice whether to accept it or not.

We remind you that the Internet is not a secure environment and although all care is taken, we cannot guarantee the security of information you provide to us via electronic means.

Access and correction

In most circumstances, you have a right to access the personal information which we collect and hold about you, and to have it corrected if it is wrong. Please contact us if you wish to access or correct your personal information. We may deny your request in some circumstances and if we do this we will tell you why.

We will endeavour to respond to any request for access within 14-30 days, depending on the complexity of the request. If your request is urgent please indicate this clearly.

Privacy Complaints

If you wish to complain about any breach or potential breach of this privacy policy or the NPPs, you should contact us and your complaint will be directed to the appropriate complaints manager.

Your complaint will be considered and responded to within 7 days. It is our intention to use our best endeavours to resolve any complaint to your satisfaction, however, if you are unhappy with our response, you are entitled to contact the Office of the Privacy Commissioner who may investigate your complaint further.

Central West Health Privacy Officer
PO Box 513
Kalgoorlie WA 6433
Phone: 1300 653 099

Changes to this policy

Central West Health regularly reviews and updates its policies. This policy was last amended on 14 February 2007.

Health Insurance and Privacy

Health insurance is provided to contributors and, in some cases, their dependants and family members. Central West Health may hold personal information about you if you hold (or have held) a health insurance policy, or if someone holds or has held one on your behalf.

In the context of providing health insurance, Central West Health may collect and hold information about your claims history, your Medicare number, your tax file number, and your medical history.

If you do not wish to provide personal information which is required, Central West Health may not be able to determine and pay benefits under your policy, assess or waive lifetime health cover loading, or assess and apply your eligibility for the federal government private health insurance tax rebate.

In the context of health insurance, Central West Health may use, and if necessary disclose, your personal information:

in connection with arrangements you make to pay your premium (for example with your employer or a financial institution); and

Central West Health is also obliged by the National Health Act to maintain certain transaction records and make those records available for inspection by the Health Insurance Commission. We will disclose this and any other information as required by law.

What the Privacy Act means for you

Central West Health Cover respects the privacy of its members' details and is committed to ensuring that the privacy and security of members' personal information remains protected.

From 21 December 2001, a new government policy was introduced to protect individuals' privacy. Central West Health Cover's Privacy Policy complies with the Commonwealth Privacy (Private Sector) Amendment Act 2000, which gives individuals the right to know:

Central West Health Cover will only collect personal information to perform functions relating to insurance policy management or other product and service management or for marketing purposes.

The primary purpose for which personal information is collected is usually clear from the type of form you are completing or the type of service you are requesting. For example, information requested on a claim form will be used for the primary purpose of assessing and processing your claim.

Central West Health Cover is required to collect your information under either the Health Insurance Act 1973 or the National Health Act 1953. The personal information we collect from you may be disclosed between related organisations of Healthguard Health Benefits Fund Limited.

You may lodge a privacy request for personal information to Central West Health Cover by writing to the correspondence address below. All requests will be completed within 30 days and in most cases, will be at no cost to you.

If for any reason the request cannot be satisfied then you will be informed of the reason in writing.

We encourage you to discuss any concerns you may have on a Privacy issue by calling the Central West Health Cover Service Centre on 133 206 or write to PO Box 577, Lithgow NSW 2790.

If your privacy concerns have not been resolved to your satisfaction we encourage you to request in writing that the matter be referred to the Central West Health Cover Privacy Co-ordinator to utilise the Central West Health Cover Privacy Internal Dispute Resolution process.

This process will normally be completed and a final decision made within 15 working days and will involve no cost to you.

All correspondence should be sent to:

Privacy Co-ordinator
Central West Health Cover
PO Box 577
LITHGOW NSW 2790

Further information on Privacy

The Office of the Federal Privacy Commissioner provides a free service aimed at investigations and resolving privacy complaints. More information is available concerning this service and the Federal Privacy Policy from the Commissioner's Office on 1300 363 992.

Corporate Information

Healthguard Health Benefits Fund Limited ABN 26 054 321 274 is a registered health benefits organisation under the National Health Act, carrying on business as Central West Health Cover and under other business names.

The Central West Health Cover Code of Practice is designed to help our members by providing clear information and transparency in our dealings with them. The Code covers four main areas of conduct in private health insurance. They are :-

Our obligation to you under the code:

We will endeavour to:

How the Code Helps Members:

Apart from promoting improved standards in clarity and usefulness of information given to members, the Code is designed to help solve problems between members and Central West Health Cover. Central West Health Cover has a complaints handling process for members who may have a dispute with Central West Health Cover. Examples of disputes include :-

You can access Central West Health Cover's complaint handling process by calling us on 133 206 or by writing to

PO Box 577
LITHGOW NSW 2790.

If you are not satisfied with the outcome of your concern you can ask to have it reviewed by the Internal Dispute Resolution process (IDR).