To think Rishi has made it clear he has private health provision

105 replies

Kinnorafron · 09/01/2023 07:56

After 13 years of Tory destruction of the health service I can see why - but what about people who can't afford it?

OP posts:

socialmedia23 · 09/01/2023 10:22

HerringBoneBlanket · 09/01/2023 10:20

I sort of thought it was there if we needed it, but hadn't tested it. I'm now v aware how hit and miss and unreliable it will be.

The resources just aren't out there anyway. As a country we do not train enough HCPs, we don't retain enough, we don't offer attractive reasons and processes to move to the UK to work in health. A shift in the workforce such as is required will take decades to make.

If the NHS remains as it is, or gets worse (as seems likely) then the reality is that many, many of us will go without healthcare to varying degrees, even if insured and/or willing to pay.

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i keep my health insurance in my home country. I think more people will go abroad. I know indians living in London who fly back to India to access private healthcare.

MarshaBradyo · 09/01/2023 10:26

HerringBoneBlanket · 09/01/2023 10:13

In the time period (weeks) we've not been able to book a private gp appointment via vitality, I've had several same day replies to econsults from my NHS GP!

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Same here. I’d still recommend private just check what’s included first. And use whatever is best at the time. It also means more money going into overall system

I grew up in a country where people didn’t find it such a bad thing, in fact you’d get a tax rebate if private.

Cherry60 · 09/01/2023 11:02

The other day in his pathetic speech he made a big deal about being from an 'NHS family' so the fact that he goes private is an admission that NHS provision is inadequate.

Xmasgrinchywinchy · 09/01/2023 11:53

socialmedia23 · 09/01/2023 09:58

www.thetimes.co.uk/article/c0486b12-5206-11ed-bb65-87f2b7644902?fbclid=IwAR3c6inotgdGxZKltPThTUv80aYbWudPSGK6ynCUeprHLa4b_maEWCx189o

After James Guthrie KC fell ill, he received a sliver of comfort through the post when Bupa, his private medical insurers, sent a pamphlet entitled Supporting You through Cancer.
“At a time when you’ll already have more than enough on your mind, we understand that the last thing you want to worry about is money,” it read.
Guthrie, 72, has been a customer for more than 20 years. For peace of mind he always made sure his insurance, which also covers his wife, Lu, a calligrapher, was fully comprehensive and included “cancer cover”.
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Before he got cancer, he had been paying about £7,000 a year. Since getting bowel cancer in 2017, however, his premium has gone up — and up. It almost doubled from about £42,000 in 2020 to almost £82,000 last year, a bill that arrived when he was seriously ill and receiving chemotherapy.
Last month, a bill arrived for £163,639. “This seems to miss the point of insurance,” said Guthrie, whose older brother is Lord Guthrie of Craigiebank, the former chief of the defence staff.

“It seems to me outrageous that Bupa can make money from people who are perfectly well but when they have the misfortune to become ill they either want to get rid of them or charge a premium they can’t possibly afford, so they can avoid taking responsibility.”
Guthrie is one of thousands of people experiencing rising costs for private medical insurance, owing to increases in medical costs; inflation; energy prices; higher insurance premium tax [IPT]; and a shortage of doctors and nurses. His case serves to highlight the gamble patients make when opting to “go private” with insurers trying to recoup the cost of expensive medical procedures from the patients themselves.
Martyn James, a consumer champion, said: “There is an assumption [health insurance] is a little bit like a pension, that this kind of policy is frontloaded. They get all your money when you aren’t making claims and then when you reach your sixties and seventies, and you need cover, they will pay out.
“This is a salutary reminder that that’s not always the case.”

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that was unfortunate and is not the norm. I have been through a terminal diagnosis of my husband with all sorts of treatment ongoing for several years and our insurance covered every single thing with no quibble as well as experimental drugs. Same with most of our friends who have all used private cancer care where possible.

Annabel073 · 09/01/2023 11:55

Darthwazette · 09/01/2023 08:12

Personally I think it’s great if the very wealthy have their own private health provision, it reduces the strain in the NHS for those of us who can’t afford to go private.

I agree. I don't know any high earners that don't have private health insurance.

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