Health Insurance - is it worth it?

I've had it in the past (pre children when I could spend all my disposable income on myself ?) and I claimed more than I had paid it.

I had a minor Op that isnt offered on the NHS but improved my wellbeing/quality of life.

I still used NHS for most things unless I hit a wall then I used my insurancs

and when I used the NHS for an op I got cash back from my insurance

Private med insurance doesn't cover emergencies, and private hospitals have no emergency department. Having said that, I had a dramatic emergency not long after I lost my husband - in short, bleeding proffusely from the mouth. I was alone, and coping with this. Tried to contact my GP surgery - total confusion and no help. Didn't occur to me to contact NHS 111. Finally someone got to me the following day, and arranged a hospital admission. Got there in a cab, then had to wait in a queue to be registered (could barely stand up.) Finally, after hours, admitted to a geriatric ward - one patient with serious (and loud!) dementia, one dying patient surrounded non-stop by family, one totally silent, then me. Terrifying confusion re-my treatment the following day, and the trauma has never left me. Private hospitals are organised and quiet, and they also serve edible food. They are not a luxury. French/German health systems come closer to this than ours, and they're free.

Private med insurance doesn't cover emergencies, and private hospitals have no emergency department

yes but they do cover follow up following an emergency

But Op private hospitals usually dont accept frailty admissions either. Theyre not set up for them as their rooms usually arent observation beds most have only side rooms. You have to be preassessed as "fit" for admission. So you probably would not have avoided your elderly ward experience had you had insurance

My SIL (nurse) said to make sure BUPA hospital is near to an NHS hospital. Most BUPA hospitals don’t have facilities or the right staff if, for example, you start to haemorage (slugged?) - that was meant to be (sp?) but slugged will do!

A local optician gets people in for cataract surgery straight away. One lady was in shock as it was done that week and she wasn’t expecting it).

It’s not in the interests of some consultants to speed up the NHS as they earn a fortune from private patients.

Private hospitals can stabalise emergencies and can reoperate for haemorrhages but will transfer you for bigger complications or if you're going to need say overnight registrar cover ( this is also the case with a lot of NHS hospitals who also have to transfer you if you end up needing higher 24hr cover ) But their critical care level is limited. Most can look after you for up to high dependency level but would transfer you for intensive care.

All intensive cares are centralised and are a mix of NHS and private patients. There isnt NHS ITUs then private ITUS (there are some very specialised exceptions).

In short. transfers are already planned for. And if you go NHS you may also need to be transferred for higher level care

It’s not in the interests of some consultants to speed up the NHS as they earn a fortune from private patients

Thats nonsense they do overtime to try to prevent breaches on their NHS days. Have you not followed the overtime Vs pensions issues in the news?

Re the Benenden Healthcare at £11 a month. Would it cost me that if I applied now? I’ve been NHS all my life. However, a few years back I had my right hip replaced after a year on the waiting list. My left hip became so painful afterwards that I paid a lot of money to have it done privately (by the same surgeon). Wish I’d got private insurance out years ago. If I can claim for minor ops from now I’d happily pay £11 a month

p.s. Consultants arenf in charge of bookings in the NHS there are bookings departments. They have input but they cant run half empty lists

I’m 74 next month btw which may impact the monthly payment

We're with Benendon. Quite cheap really. Before lockdown I had a trigger thumb. They authorised me seeing a specialist and I had an injection then a follow up appointment. I now need further treatment but dont know if they'll pay for it again.

When I check my bank statement and see what I pay out each month for private health insurance it seems like a fortune. To me it’s worth it. 18 months ago I visited the go with abdominal discomfort. He sent me for a scan which I had the following day. The problem meant I needed to see a consultant. This happened 3 days later and within 2 weeks I had the operation to remove a cyst which could have burst possibly causing sepsis. Then a few months ago I was back with the go again with some worrying symptoms. He wanted to organise a 2 week NHS referral but I opted for private treatment. Within a week I had seen a consultant, had a scan and had been reassured that the symptoms were insignificant. My husband was called in by the gp to discuss a blood test result just before lockdown. The health insurance company arranged for an immediate phone consultation. The consultant said that there’s nothing to worry about but my husband can contact him at any time if needed. This is all worth a lot to our physical and mental health.

Admittedly, it was about 20 years ago, but my daughter almost died after a private hospital made a surgical mistake. I wouldn’t say that they are necessarily better and safer. The hospital insisted on discharging her, even though, to my untrained eye, she was obviously far from well. She ended up with peritonitis and septicaemia, and almost died due to their neglect both during and after her surgery.

Another who uses Benenden and have found them very good, for outpatient appointments , investigations etc. However having worked in healthcare all my life if anything were to go wrong Iwould prefer to be under the care of the NHS Frequently I would have seen patients transferred to our department from private hospitals as things had suddenly taken a turn for the worst and the private hospital didn't have the resources to deal with it. Fine if everything goes according to plan, but nothing is certain .

Gave it up as I approached retirement age and the premium.s got silly, after a career in the insurance business. Paid for a couple of ops. to be done privately, and each time was cheaper than a year's premiums. Ended up in NHS A&E after the second OP.

Its worth bearing in mind that while I found insurance great for minor irritations, its not quicker for cancer referrals than NHS fast tracks. It can actually slow down cancer pathways to go private

I have a long standing Bupa hospital care policy - basically it will pay for inpatient treatment, outpatient treatment And investigations, but not Consultations aside from that. It’s expensive and has rarely been used, but I keep it for the cancer and cardiac care, which is comprehensive, unlimited and covers drugs that have been found to effective, but have not yet been approved by NICE. So essentially more treatment options are available than in the NHS. I wish my husband had it, but he has diabetes and arthritis. As pre-existing conditions, they would exclude too many problems. I will keep paying for my policy unless it becomes impossible.

We have medical insurance with Western Provident. Had it for decades. I've had one tiny procedure in all the year but the husband has had absolutely masses of stuff from them. Heart procedures, an ear op, shoulder thingy. They must dread his name coming up. But it's been amazingly fab and I will keep paying in for as long as I can. (He was due for a half-knee replacement just before the virus struck.. )

p.s. my cancer comment relates to england. If you are under the Welsh NHS youre better off private than NHS for cancer.

In England you have access to lots of trial meds that arent an option in Wales. Your treatment options for cancer in wales can be the short end of the cancer stick.

In England you are BETTER (not even equal) going NHS for cancer pathways than private

We have a National Health Service. Going private is just queue-jumping. Protect the NHS.

When I went into partnership with my employer I was covered because she had always had it so I was added on. I did use it for s skin cancer treatment.
She sold the business to me and went to live in Australia. I could no longer afford the insurance so cancelled it.

Best thing I ever did. I must have saved thousands over the years. I must just say that I come from a very healthy family, we don’t have hip, knee problems and we usually die of old age.

I did have another skin cancer last year and the NHS was using the usual delaying tactics so I paid for a consultation privately.
It was £180, then about £700 for the removal of the BCC.

I would rather have used the NHS but I wanted to lose the smallest amount of nose possible.

Still a lot cheaper than all those premiums. It costs a fortune doesn’t it as one gets older? The money I would have paid in went into my private pension which, in my opinion, was a much better option.

We have a National Health Service. Going private is just queue-jumping. Protect the NHS.

Its not the same queue. Going private takes pressure off the NHS queue.

"It largely depends on your lifestyle and financial situation. In my opinion, it is better to have health insurance since you never know when it may be helpful to you. In addition, the insurance payment is not so big if you have chosen the right package of services.
I've been choosing between plan g vs plan n for a long time. I had to read a lot of websites, but as a result, I turned to one company, which fully instructed me and selected the optimal plan.
Calculate how much money you are willing to spend on insurance, what health problems you have, and seek advice."

lovebooks

Private med insurance doesn't cover emergencies, and private hospitals have no emergency department. Having said that, I had a dramatic emergency not long after I lost my husband - in short, bleeding proffusely from the mouth. I was alone, and coping with this. Tried to contact my GP surgery - total confusion and no help. Didn't occur to me to contact NHS 111. Finally someone got to me the following day, and arranged a hospital admission. Got there in a cab, then had to wait in a queue to be registered (could barely stand up.) Finally, after hours, admitted to a geriatric ward - one patient with serious (and loud!) dementia, one dying patient surrounded non-stop by family, one totally silent, then me. Terrifying confusion re-my treatment the following day, and the trauma has never left me. Private hospitals are organised and quiet, and they also serve edible food. They are not a luxury. French/German health systems come closer to this than ours, and they're free.

My family in Germany have to pay compulsory Health Insurance, all Germans have to by law, even those unemployed, although that is financed by the State. You cannot get treatment without your health card .

I would think that Lovesbooks has made up their mind by now. The op is 16. Months old