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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To consider Private Medical Cover

62 replies

needabreak5 · 11/01/2023 22:51

Given the concerns re NHS. My employer offers BUPA cover for me and family at a cost of approximately £160 per month. I would probably need to cut back to afford, maybe cancel gym membership and perhaps life cover. Would you do this? I’m worried about long waits and poor outcomes if any of us were to need any NHS treatment/diagnosis etc?

OP posts:
Original poster
needabreak5 · 12/01/2023 09:19

Thanks for all the replies. Mixed reviews about how quickly you can be seen in the private sector too. I have colleagues who have been seen quickly recently (October and December). One for initial fertility investigation, and the other for back pain, and has had regular appointments and follow up.

OP posts:
Xmasgrinchywinchy · 12/01/2023 09:25

no issues whatsoever with seeing private doctors, if you can't see the one you want to see you simply find another who can see you, that's the beauty of private. It moves MUCH quicker, even now. Personally I think that the care is like night and day and is how medical care should be. Cancer treatment, no wait for scans and just as importantly, results, quicker, moves quickly. continuity of care, often options of drugs not available on the NHS. Unless you have no choice I don't understand why you would use NHS.

WaffleDogBlanket · 12/01/2023 09:25

needabreak5 · 12/01/2023 09:19

Thanks for all the replies. Mixed reviews about how quickly you can be seen in the private sector too. I have colleagues who have been seen quickly recently (October and December). One for initial fertility investigation, and the other for back pain, and has had regular appointments and follow up.

Yes I think it greatly depends on the speciality and condition.

Locally to us, appointments for allergy, gynae, orthopaedics are all hard to come by as I understand. I think you can get appointments for general surgical but the wait for an operation date is longer than it was last year (still much quicker than the 18 months suggested in the local NHS)

lovelilies · 12/01/2023 09:46

I'm a nurse and have Aviva health for me and two DC for £37 per month, I don't understand why your premiums are so high?

lovelilies · 12/01/2023 09:47

I'm a nurse and have Aviva health for me and two DC for £37 per month, I don't understand why your premiums are so high?

Roselilly36 · 12/01/2023 09:55

Keep life cover in place and look at a cheaper private medical insurer, such a Benenden.

OhLaLas · 12/01/2023 09:56

It's a no brainer. Just do it.

I pay £120pm for me (I'm in my 60s) and consider £1200 approx a year brilliant value.

As a family, we had private cover for years through company cover and used it a lot. We didn't pay (it was part of DHs salary package.)

The benefits are you can choose your specialist, get appts quickly, get diagnosis faster and also access some treatments that are not available on the NHS.

My DH sadly has cancer. When he was diagnosed, he got his results back in 6 days (biopsy.) He was told at the time that the NHS wait for the results was 6 weeks. Now, it can be 12 weeks and that's before any treatment can start. Likewise, he got further scans far more often than the NHS provides.

Unless you have seen both sides, you are unlikely to appreciate the difference.

massistar · 12/01/2023 10:12

I've got it through work and have added DH and 2 DC for £65. It's been great for DH. He's had a number of ACL ops and private diagnosis for a complex condition that would've taken months on NHS. Have used it for private physio for all of us too.

Original poster
needabreak5 · 12/01/2023 10:28

Talking to my employer the BUPA cover was chosen, even with more expensive premiums (they are linked to age), as the cover is unlimited for things like cancer and they will cover exploring alternative treatments etc. the others they looked at the cover wasn’t as extensive.

OP posts:
PinkSparklyPussyCat · 12/01/2023 10:38

I've got BUPA through work and it's one of the reasons I haven't left my job as it covers DH and I. I was having pelvic pain last year and I was able to see a consultant the next day and I could have had the scan 3 days later but I waited to see a female radiographer. DH is having problems with his hip and knee and will also use BUPA for that. I've also made use of the Babylon app.

Nogbreaks · 12/01/2023 10:43

Get it but the reality is they don’t do preventive stuff and they don’t do emergencies so you may find yourself uninsured for lots of stuff.
eg my GP wanted to send me for genetic testing, my very good work insirwNce wouldn’t cover it and the NHS had me tested within 2 weeks.
our insurance won’t cover DS asthma but he gets excellent care/check ups via NHS.
but if Pulled a ligament and wanted sports therapy for that the insurance will cover a certain amount of visits
If DS break his arm - he’ll go to our NHS hospital.
If DW wants smear - NHS - not covered by private insurance.
but if she had a concern about a lump in her breast insurance would pay for a consultation.

ByTheGrace · 12/01/2023 10:50

needabreak5 · 11/01/2023 22:51

Given the concerns re NHS. My employer offers BUPA cover for me and family at a cost of approximately £160 per month. I would probably need to cut back to afford, maybe cancel gym membership and perhaps life cover. Would you do this? I’m worried about long waits and poor outcomes if any of us were to need any NHS treatment/diagnosis etc?

This is a bargain for Bupa. We also have Bupa, it's our biggest outlay second only to our mortgage and we are getting to the point of not affording it. We pay double your quote for a couple in early 50s, but the NHS is dire in our area. Bupa have been better than any other full insurer that we've had, £100 excess per year. They never quibble treatment, but the BUPA reg consultants thing can be a pain.

We also have SimplyHealth plan for optical, dental and limited medical. They are very good.

MarshaBradyo · 12/01/2023 10:51

Not if you have to cancel life cover

Gym, you could replace with other exercise

Orangesandlemons77 · 12/01/2023 10:58

BeGentlePeeps · 11/01/2023 23:33

Jokes aside; it depends on where in the country you are, and what the current circumstances are in your own health care authority.

I’m a GP in a small country surgery in south east England. Our patients have great (open) access to us and our local hospital trust (where my husband is a consultant) is creaking but the emergency/ cancer/ urgent cover is really good. Not necessarily comfortable (long A&E waits) but safe.

Private health insurance in these conditions wouldn’t negate the areas that are struggling (emergency care) and wouldn’t improve your emergency access.

For lesser life threatening things; sore knee affecting function, funny neurology, need (or indeed want) an MRI for back pain, need physio, skin condition, gastro symptoms with no red flags (after primary care investigation) etc you might wait 8months + for a specialist NHS appt. in these situations insurance is super helpful.

My dad was diagnosed with a very serious cancer in NI last year (an area reported to be really struggling with healthcare). The first 6 weeks ‘waiting’ for scans and tests were awful but really wouldn’t have been much faster in private sector… maybe a couple of weeks quicker. My parents understandably looked into and indeed were desperate to use their expensive BUPA to get on with things; then suddenly all the results came in and the NHS swooped in, his care was second to none medically speaking. No bells and whistles but really just the same drugs and scans and surgery he would have had in the private sector.

In our house we don’t have health insurance. I trust the system in life risking or urgent presentations. However we have paid privately for the odd specialist consultation re the kids (an allergy appt; £400 incl patch testing, a specialist appt for 10yo still nightly bed wetting)… but always paid just to expedite appt, not because the care would not eventually have happened. Indeed both appts were with the same specialists who also deliver the local NHS service (working full time NHS hours) so really we were paying for a timely weekend appt rather than better care.

if your family are young, in good health etc personally I would favour setting aside the £100 or so aside into a savings account and accepting that if the NHS is falling short of your needs you dip into that.

Having said all that I know the NHS is struggling at different levels across the country so it depends on what your local service is doing.

Sorry- long post!

This is where something like Benenden health comes in handy. Quick diagnosis and funding for more minor surgeries etc which would take a long time on the NHS.

NoMoreShit · 12/01/2023 11:07

You'd probably get cheaper & just as good by shopping around. Employer schemes aren't always the best option.

I pay £60pm for me (F, 52) & my 19yo son. My other teenage sons are covered for free. I've got extra cancer cover for treatments not used by the NHS & my union membership gives me enhanced MH services for free. It's with WPA & I couldn't be happier with the service. It'd cost me around the same via my employer but their's is only a cash back scheme.

OhLaLas · 12/01/2023 11:18

I'm sorry to have to disagree with @BeGentlePeeps
Maybe there is a huge regional variation, but our experience of cancer diagnosis and treatment was very different.

My DH was already scheduled for his op (privately) while waiting for an NHS referral for a scan!

The dr who suspected cancer advised him to allow the NHS referral to run but at the same time pursue the private option and see which happened fastest.

We did our homework and chose one of the top surgeons in the UK, he had his major op quickly, and the results of the biopsy within under a week.

From first suspicion of something wrong (and this was initiated by us, using private cover) to the operation itself, was around 4 weeks. The NHS hadn't even provided an appt with a specialist in that time.

He was then scanned every 4 months for a long time, far more than the NHS allocation of post-surgery scanning. The scan results were sent to his dr within an hour, to discuss. In the NHS some people, we hear, are waiting weeks for scan results.

He was also eligible with private cover for licensed drugs which were not (yet) agreed by Nice.

I agree that once you are in the system, you often get good treatment, but it's the delays that are the factor and also access to treatments.

DewinDwl · 12/01/2023 11:29

I would do it. I have the sort of health history that means no mainstream insurer would touch me with a bargepole. I have had to go private for some tests as my GP is useless and the local health board is a horror show - my bill this month was £1.5k.

scoobelopey · 12/01/2023 11:55

Don't cancel life cover. That seems fairly obvious. If you use the gym a lot - cancelling that seems counter productive.

Do your research of YOUR health area. Don't buy in to all the scaremongering that everyone is doomed. It's far far from the truth (NHS employee here)

Your area might have a major problem with ambulances / A&E admissions the most for example - but your cover won't cover that. Do you your research first.

Also - the more people going down the private route will make private waiting lists longer and NHS less (which is what the government wants you to do) There's only a finite amount of health resource (infrastructure / staff etc) out there.

scoobelopey · 12/01/2023 12:15

Also to say - just because you can pay for something, doesn't make it better. You might get seen quicker which gives you certain peace of mind, but not everyone who is a private practitioner has the skills / experience / access to assessments and treatments and governance that an NHS practitioner does.

You may get seen quicker but receive a worse clinical service (again - speaking from experience as an AHP who has treated many patients badly let down by private therapists lacking in basic skills)

Xmasgrinchywinchy · 12/01/2023 12:35

OhLaLas · 12/01/2023 11:18

I'm sorry to have to disagree with @BeGentlePeeps
Maybe there is a huge regional variation, but our experience of cancer diagnosis and treatment was very different.

My DH was already scheduled for his op (privately) while waiting for an NHS referral for a scan!

The dr who suspected cancer advised him to allow the NHS referral to run but at the same time pursue the private option and see which happened fastest.

We did our homework and chose one of the top surgeons in the UK, he had his major op quickly, and the results of the biopsy within under a week.

From first suspicion of something wrong (and this was initiated by us, using private cover) to the operation itself, was around 4 weeks. The NHS hadn't even provided an appt with a specialist in that time.

He was then scanned every 4 months for a long time, far more than the NHS allocation of post-surgery scanning. The scan results were sent to his dr within an hour, to discuss. In the NHS some people, we hear, are waiting weeks for scan results.

He was also eligible with private cover for licensed drugs which were not (yet) agreed by Nice.

I agree that once you are in the system, you often get good treatment, but it's the delays that are the factor and also access to treatments.

this x100, I could have said the same, word for word.

Xmasgrinchywinchy · 12/01/2023 12:44

the thing with private care is that you choose your doctor. you can find the person you want to see, who specialises in whatever you need them to. Like the above poster, with cancer, we found the leading doctor in the country who was at the absolute forefront of research and treatment and who was one of the top guys in the world for the particular cancer. This was in contrast to the local NHS hospital consultant we were offered who was extremely young and very shruggy shoulders. i wasn't happy with his approach so looked elsewhere, privately. It's unlikely that we would have been able to see the dr we eventually went with on the NHS as he was miles away from us. Treatment was totally different to the one NHS has proposed and one we were far happier with.

BubziOwl · 12/01/2023 13:00

A posted earlier mentioned their favourite part of their insurance is their video GP appointments.

I just wanted to add that my husband's life insurance includes this service for him and any of our children. We've used it a fair few times. I just thought I'd mention this in case it helps anyone who is having trouble accessing a GP. If that would be someone's main reason to consider going private, then it might be worth looking into? I can't think how much he pays for his life insurance off the top of my head, but I know it's less than £10 a month (not sure if that includes illness cover or if his illness cover is paid separately). I've had a google and I can see several life insurance companies that offer it.

Nogbreaks · 12/01/2023 13:42

We haven’t bothered extending any work health coverage to our kids because we have world class NHS hospitals in our doorstep, and there’s no way any private care would be better.
TBH we have world class NHS hospitals too, but the insurance is covered by work and costs us almost nothing to have.

Nogbreaks · 12/01/2023 13:42

Kids hospitals…

OhLaLas · 12/01/2023 14:18

@Xmasgrinchywinchy we are in agreement.

I can't imagine DH just going into the local NHS hospital and having any surgeon operate. Who knows how experienced they are? Or who he'd get on the day? It was a major op taking almost 5 hours.

We had a short list of top surgeons who have spent their life doing that op and teaching others. (He was given a name of a surgeon locally- private- but looking at his bio he had very little experience.)

You do need to accept that with private care you are in the driving seat. And, to be honest, you can put in as much time choosing the right specialist as you would buying a new car or a house!

The after-care was superb (I won't name the hospital but one of the best in England) and he had 1:1 physio and nursing for several days.

Compare that to a 12-bed mixed ward in the NHS with no privacy, probably no sleep because of the noise, and awful food. This might sound trivial but when you are recovering from a major op, it matters.

TBH I can't think of anything more worthwhile to spend your money on. If I had to choose, I'd forgo clothes, holidays, cars etc.