Private health care are you opting out because not available now?

[justasking111]

With the treasury being asked by the NHS to hang onto the Spire/Bupa beds for the foreseeable future and paying the extra to achieve this I wondered if it was worth having any more.

OH has paid 7k for an operation scheduled in March, cancelled the night before, he did this because NHS informed him they could not do it due to covid. This was for a torn rotor cuff so considered very urgent.

I am on a health plan pay £1200 per annum in advance, paid in February so that money is gone, but I know others pay monthly.

Employers offer private health care which I presume is now not available to employees if they need surgery.

Private hospitals are now reopening slowly for non urgent surgery.

I had some private non invasive treatment last week, all arranged very quickly. I think things are slowly returning to a sort of normal, hopefully that will soon include surgery. I opted to go private because it was the nhs investigations that weren't available (for many many months or even years, who knows?). As it was investigation for, and ultimate diagnosis of, a heart disorder, I am glad I didn't wait.

I had a letter from BUPA last week to say some hospitals were opening back up and not to hesitate if I needed to get in touch.

I've continued to pay the premium for all of us throughout Covid because if something does happen over the next 12 months that BUPA could cover it eases the weight on the NHS. It may not work that way, but I feel safer knowing it's there.

None of our hospitals are open. So good luck to those who are getting a service.

Following as arranging a healthcare plan was on my to-do list in The Before Times.

My hip surgeon posted on our facebook group today that he would slowly be starting his practice again from end of August, but only 1 - 2 operations per month as opposed to the 16 he was doing.

Private hospitals and other services like physios are starting to open back up. Waiting times in the NHS are going to be long after this, although private hospitals may well have a backlog it’ll be easier to get treated with them. So I think worth keeping access to private if you have it and think you’ll need treatment.