To ask if you have private health insurance?

[CherryValley5]

Do you have it? Would you get it?

Having just received DD’s (eye watering) PHI renewal it struck me that 10 years ago it would not have even entered my mind to insure a teenager, nowadays it would feel like borderline neglect if I cancelled her policy and instead made her sit on endless NHS waiting lists. I am insured too through work and would never take another job that didn’t offer it. Just sitting here in disbelief that something I would’ve called a luxury not too long ago now feels like an essential for quality of life. It’s so depressing!

Which is what I thought until we were met with a £50k bill or alternatively 2 years of waiting for DD!..

We did but when I actually tried to use it, due to where we are, there were no private consultants closer than 3 hours away for the specialism I needed (there were NHS ones at the hospital an hour away) and it didn't seem practical or feasible to have to go back and forth on a 6-hour round trip.

Diagnosis is my worry anyway, not treatment particularly, as I've never had an issue with the latter here (Scotland) and mostly wanted it for cancer diagnosis fast track, but I think it'll be cheaper to just pay for that if I ever need it.

What is everyone paying for their policy?

Mine is free through work but DD’s is close to £70/month on Bupa which feels like a lot!

Can anyone recommend any insurance companies? And if you don't mind saying, what you pay per month?

Yes we do through DH work, but it isn't a replacement for the NHS and doesn't cover everything.

For example it wouldn't cover DS asthma. It isn't covering the private drug I'm having to pay for for my long term condition which the NHS should be paying for but I can't get them to.
It wouldn't cover you if you had an emergency/accident and need treatment in A&E so while it's useful for some things. Private health care in the UK doesn't replace everything the NHS does and won't pay for everything like long-term preexisting conditions.

Yes myself and husband have. We see it as a necessity not luxury. We get same day in person appointments if needed, virtual appointments right away.

Private hospitals with single rooms, Only thing we use nhs for is a and e .

I have it through work. I had my gallbladder removed, which would have ended up as an emergency op with pancreatitis had I needed to wait for the NHS, currently 100 weeks at my local hospital.

Also had gynae treatment this year. I wouldn't be without it again now.

I get it via work and I would never be without it now, when I leave I will be keeping the policy regardless of cost. Never used it for years, but it was bupa that kept me alive when they diagnosed when I kept being dismissed by gp, so they’ve won me as a customer!

My dad always said your health insurance bill is your most important bill and my god it’s saved both him and us (me dh and kids!) I can’t even tell you the horrific amounts we’ve put into it but if we hadn’t we’d have been stuck time and time again (hilarious that only ten years ago I considered chucking it in because we hadn’t gotten anything out of it!!) Even when we were poor poor I made sure to keep it up (although we dropped to lowest tier to save money and as a result I waited 2 years for a procedure)

I had an operation thirty years ago privately because my DF had BUPA with his job. It massively speeded up the time for diagnosis and treatment.

Nowadays there's no way we could afford pmi. But I'm considering paying for Benenden Health (much much cheaper!) to speed up tests. My DM has it and has really found it useful!

Yes but it's pretty useless for long term stuff. A private GP cannot deal with ongoing chronic issues. And as for ongoing chronic issues and hospital treatment (a lifelong condition) - diagnosis might be covered but treatment for life is not.
I have used to for a referral to a different specialist which is useful.

I've got private healthcare insurance through work.

But the doctors who do private work are the same ones who work in the NHS, so your chances of encountering negligence are no less.

The advantage is in the speed of treatment, not the quality.

I also think that once you are in the NHS system, treatment is good. The problem is getting into the system, which is where access to a private GP is key. That's what's worth spending money on.

No. It most definitely is a luxury and you are not neglecting your child if you don't have PIH.

(P.S I can afford it).

Have it through work. Frankly it's a waste of time - I don't think we've ever managed to get a successful claim on it - everything is either "not covered" or "pre-existing". It's an £1800 BIK that I pay tax on but see no benefit from. Unfortunately we cannot opt out - I'd prefer the cash personally.

No, although I do have a health cash plan which came in very handy when I needed a corticosteroid injection and the nhs pit me on a long waiting list. Was able to get it under physiotherapy. Aware that health cash plans are extremely limited.

We did but got rid of ours about a year ago. DH is due a pay rise this month so we'll be reinstating it soon.

I’ve got low cost cover through Beneden, not all singing/dancing but it’s something, I buy it for me and DC. I used to have Bupa through work but lost it when I moved to the public sector.

Beneden

I’m with Aviva through work and DD is with Bupa. Aviva are far easier to deal with and have much better customer service, although I can’t complain too much about Bupa as everything DD has needed done has been covered without any issues.

For DD I pay nearly £70/month with £100 excess. This also includes 2 dental check ups per year. Her policy has a yearly outpatients limit of £1000, meaning that when she exceeds it any consultations, scans etc have to be paid for by ourselves until the policy renews. It’s a regret of mine and I do think it’s worth paying a higher monthly rate to avoid this, £1k mounts up quicker than you’d expect. Inpatient treatment like surgery etc is fully covered with no limit though.

Not sure how much mine costs as it’s through work but like DD there’s still £100 excess to be paid.

Yes, time for Labour to charge VAT on private medical bills

I don’t believe that they will follow through. If people are forced out of going private then it will only increase pressure on the NHS, put services even further beyond capacity and worsen the current situation.

We are retired so no insurance but would pay for some things out of savings.

Yes, through DH work. I’ve had three operations through it. DH is about to have one. We have both had physio and MH support. Would really struggle without it. Very very very lucky.

I pay £180 a month for the kids and I - have paid for around 12 years and never made a claim! I do think wow that’s like over 25k…. I’ve needed a bit of treatment in that time and the NHS has always been thorough and timely. I needed an MRI recently and only waited three weeks, consultant assured me there was no point claiming and indeed I didn’t have to.

Yes and it's been worth every penny

Yes and I’ve had over £30k of private MH treatment covered by it in the last year. I’m very grateful as the NHS MH services are so awful.