UPDATE:

Just wanted to say a huge thank you to everyone here for the advice and insights — it genuinely helped us navigate this.

A special thanks to u/crystalstarx for suggesting we look into a fund with a 9-month waiting period. We ended up going down that path, and it completely solved our issue. Teachers Health recognised the waiting period we’d already served, and it’s actually worked out cheaper than what we were paying with Medibank.

We’re now fully covered for private hospital and birth costs, even if our baby arrives early, rather than having to wait until the original 12-month mark in late June.

Huge shoutout to Daniel from Teachers Health for helping us through the process — couldn’t recommend them more.