Do you have private health insurance?

[ElizabethG81]

I'm considering getting private health insurance and am a bit overwhelmed with all the options - what to include, 6 week wait option, hospital options, etc. Do you have it? If so, which insurance company? Aviva seems to come up cheapest for me so would appreciate hearing about experiences with them.

I'd be adding my 2 children on to the policy but am confused about hospital choices as it seems not many private hospitals treat children. Is it only really London hospitals that would be available?

Having a 6 week wait (i.e. if the NHS waiting list is under 6 weeks, then you use the NHS, if not you can go private straight away) reduces the price by about £20 per month, but is this worth it? They do say that most cancer treatments would start within 6 weeks on the NHS, but as I understand it, I would still be able to claim any treatments that the NHS didn't offer on the insurance policy.

Thanks in advance.

My new work healthcare is AXA ppp level 4(?) It's good no real problems but correctly reclaiming is annoying and takes me ages to get the correct receipts from the dentist in particular . Dental and Optical is fab
I get all my hygenist apps covered in full and 80% of contact lenses costs.

Was previously with Cigna and was sad to leave them as they were really fab. the call centres were in Scotland and i generally spoke to very nice comforting sounding people who were very empathetic, which was really helpful as I had to go through a semi scary diagnosis and surgery privately and they were supremely kind and helpful. (If you work for Cigna 👍👍👍 you guys do an amazing job)

I have AXA through work and it's fantastic. I saw a GP virtually (same day appointment), referral for a gynaecologist came through same day and I was seen that week in a lovely private hospital. Also, needed two wisdom teeth removing (diagnosed before I joined my company) and they paid for the whole thing. We have some sort of counselling/MH package too which people say is good. Not much help sorry because work pay so no idea the level or price. I have actually never used it previously, despite always having it through work, as it felt wrong to skip queues through privilege, but seeing a GP has been bloody impossible recently and I was sick of worrying about an issue that it turns out did need addressing.

Yes I have it through Aviva.

It’s so worth it! I got a letter a few weeks back to attend an NHS surgical appointment..... However it was for an operation I had 2.5 years ago privately!!!!! I can’t imagine the pain and suffering I would have had to go through over the last couple of years without having had the operation privately.

We have PHI through work, and took our young children off the policy two years ago as our experience was that they were seen very quickly on the NHS, and the one time they couldn't be, no private hospitals or consultants would see children privately (we live in a city in the south of England but not London).

We currently have Axa, previously had Bupa and some other companies, all with pros and cons. The most useful for me were the ones that had an allowance for self-referred physio and osteo every year, able to use as needed. On the other policies you only got physio cover after e.g. a specific injury, for a set number of weeks, which was (1) never enough and (2) didn't fit with the timescale of physio needed - I needed same number of sessions but spread over double the time and this wasn't covered.

Most useful generally has been quick referral to consultants and for MRIs etc, which DH and I have used multiple times. In fact DH once had a serious disc issue which the NHS weren't taking seriously, he was then seen by a consultant and treated and we discovered that if he hadn't been seen promptly, he could have permanently lost his leg, bladder etc function!

I'd be wary of having surgery where a swift transfer to an NHS ICU wasn't possible, because they don't have that capability in standalone private hospitals.

The better coffee, service, more comfortable in-patient facilities, and amount of time you get in appointments are all good.

Not sure how useful the private on-line GP appointments online are. When we've used, things have needed further investigation by a GP (not virtual) and so we've then had to fight to see an NHS GP, who has been really annoyed we've gone through the private GP first. They're probably most useful when you're not sure if something needs checking out quickly, and they can reassure you the same day, so you don't need to either push for an urgent NHS GP appt, or wait, worrying, for the next available appt 6 weeks later.

I’ve had it through work for most of my career. DH has had two operations under it, probably £10k a piece. Without those, we’d have been seriously out of pocket even on the reduced amount we have paid (just paying for DH and tax on mine) doing it through work. I’ve had an MRI and some physio almost 20 years ago.

Not having insurance doesn’t mean you can’t access private care, it just means you have to find a way to pay for it.

I’ve been self employed for over a year now, not paid for an individual policy as I would rather “pay as I go”. Probably saved over £1500 in premiums already, the only thing we’ve needed is a podiatrist for me (£90).

Yes, it is a risk that something big will be needed, but if you can afford the premiums you can probably also afford a loan to pay for (say) a £10k operation.

I have it through work and it covers DH. I had my gallbladder out very quickly - that was incredibly lucky. I was in awful pain and the wait on the NHS was ridiculous. DH has had his cataracts done, probably a year earlier than on the NHS. I also got a £600 cash back because I spent a week in an NHS hospital.

I don’t think I’d bother for the extra facilities and in fact I’d rather be in a big basic teaching hospital where there’s likely to be specialists on overnight. Genuinely I was a bit nervous getting my gallbladder out somewhere that seemed more like a hotel. However my pain at that point was honestly ruining my life so I was certainly very glad to take the private option.

As a PA to a broker, I 100% recommend you go via a broker.
They can advise you what best suits you to your budget. There is a lot of variations, 6 week wait, therapies, dental and optical, full outpatient, excesses. Quite a few different companies.

A broker will find the best company suited for your needs ( IE- only Aviva are offering 6 week wait currently to new customers, other providers have stopped due to waiting times )
Each year they will source discounts, and get quotes from other providers etc.
All at no cost to you.

Strongly advise you go via a broker.

I’m a totally private patient as is my family. Nhs only for emergencies. Opted out of Nhs at 26 because it couldn't control a minor problem and a richer friend explained how the private system worked.

1. Where do you live? That will determine what hospitals you cover. We only use London central but pointless if you’re out of area. High level private London hospitals are brilliant. My child had a minor op at a totally private hospital and I was amazed at how good it was. Yes - it has intensive care on site in case of problems.

1. What consultants are covered? Most insurance companies have lists that they cover. Fine if you want limited choice but we are with a top London gp who refers to the best. These consultants won’t engage with some tight insurers and their limited payment structures. Don’t blame them. But if you’re outof London then many consultants will engage with most insurers.

1. What’s covered and what’s your excess? That’s your choice. We have full coverage for everything that’s available and no excess. It’s £400 a month for a family of 3 who are relatively young. Be aware some things aren’t covered but they are ongoing conditions - diabetes for example. But a good insurer will cover peak episodes to calm the situation.

You must know how to work the system. But it is much better and worth every penny.

Good luck

@supadupapupascupa

Can I ask please..... so if you need to see a dr, would you go see your own nhs gp first? I'm always confused. At what point do you use the private services? I understand that if you need to see a specialist you go through private.

Not anymore with AXA, can't speak for any others. On line consult and then referral.

Yes - I put off getting it for years and then majorly regretted not getting it sooner as DD then developed scoliosis. Unfortunately not covered as by that time it was deemed a pre existing condition, so we are now looking at a £35k+ bill for surgery... Before we had Bupa we just had Benenden, which if you are on a budget is a good option. It’s not ‘real’ insurance, but for £11 a month it got us quick access to consultants and diagnostics which were worth far more than we ever paid in.

Have it through DH’s job and we’ve claimed about £6k a year through it. I have an autoimmune disease so I’m not covered long term but I got two years of cover which was great as my NHS appoints were all cancelled due to COVID.
DS had his tonsils removed privately, NHS wait was enormous and he was suffering terribly so I’m very grateful we could go private.

Thanks for all the comments. I still haven't decided which to go for, it's such a minefield.

I don't know whether to cover my children or not, there seem to be mixed opinions on that. For those who have had children treated, what area of the country are you in? What happens if they say there's nowhere to treat a child in your area, can you just not claim in those circumstances or would they treat them anywhere that would do it? (I'm in NW England for context, not sure if private hospitals around here treat children.)

Bump

I went to my GP after my physio (funded by my private care) noticed I had some red marks on my back. The GP thought it was a rash and said he could prescribe some cream. I asked for a referral for a private dermatologist, it was skin cancer. I’ve since had 6 areas of my skin lasered and 4 moles removed, three of which were malignant melanoma. Now if I see anything dodgy I send a photo to my dermatologist’s secretary and then he’ll take a look and usually asks me to make an appointment to see him.
I’ve had quite a lot of gynaecologist stuff done. I’ve had 2 coils inserted under general while some other procedures were carried out. I freak out if I have a smear so I could never have tolerated a coil insertion.
I already posted upthread about how good private health has been for my son who has epilepsy. Now if I have any niggles I ask for a referral. I’ve found it particularly good for physiotherapy.

When we (SWest) couldn't get a consultant of the right specialty for baby DS, we had no other option but to wait on NHS. We did look into going private in London, but there was a waiting list for the consultant. Luckily, the local specialist NHS centre were pretty quick and we got seen and treated on the NHS instead.

100% worth every penny. We have the cover which includes all the London hospitals. Essential for children, seen by specialists immediately and no waiting around. Gives me absolute piece of mind. Essential for cancer, as often access to drugs you can’t get on the nhs plus no waiting weeks for scan results operations etc

What nobody has mentioned is choice. You choose exactly who you want to see, you can identify the experts who can look after you. You get continuity of care with the same person - not a different person scanning your notes each time. You can build a rapport and trust with the doctor and if you don’t like them it’s totally easy to move to someone else.

For our family it’s a total no brainer. Our cover also includes GP counselling mental health support and unlimited physio / osteopath

@Hobnobsandbroomstick

I work in the NHS in a hospital with a private ward. If you have private health insurance, then you will be seen quicker, get a bit longer to chat to the consultant, have your own room, and that's about it. Any investigations like X - rays, CT scans etc are done in the normal NHS part of the hospital. Also worth noting that if (God forbid) you were seriously ill, or had a procedure at an entirely private hospital which resulted in any complications, then you would end up in an NHS hospital, as private hospitals don't have A&E or ICU. So personally I wouldn't bother with private health insurance.

Wrong. With private healthcare You get a choice of where and when you can see your consultant, privacy and dignity (your own room) in hospital, treatments available that the NHS will not cover. You are not shoved on a waiting list for years and years but can access treatment quickly. Bluntly if you can get it, get it. Until you use it you will not appreciate just how fantastic private healthcare is. I have it through my employer.

I think we are so used to accepting the way the NHS runs we accept really substandard care much of the time: in my experience private is like night and day