Is private health insurance worth it?

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niteninja1@reddit

i went with wpa.

i pay \~£60 a month and on top of the health insurance i get

250 if my glasses prescription changes.

400 for dental

400 for a health screening

250 for audiology.

claiming these doesnt effect my premiums.

ive claimed everything but audiology. Meaning theyve actually paid me for the insurance this year.

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quincynkquartey@reddit

I'm a broker for private medical insurance. It is best to get it before you develop issues as it could lead to exclusions for pre existing conditions before your policy starts.

Due to your age & depending on whether you smoke or not their could be more cost effective options than Bupa

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The speed, efficiency, time you spend with the drs, bedside manner, and overall experience is magnitudes better than the NHS. My current take after several years of private health insurance and having been seen several times is that anyone who can afford it should go private whenever they can and alleviate some of the pressure from the NHS, hopefully giving more care to those who can't afford private. Ideally we wouldn't be in this situation but as we are, if you can afford private health insurance imo you should get it.

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Glasgowbeat@reddit

I used Bupa last year for a gastro issue. 2.5 years waiting list, 4 months on Bupa. Next day gp appointment from which they referred me. If you can afford it then it's absolutely worth it

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alann72@reddit

Yes, it is worth it, worried about a lump? Phone up, get a scan quickly, get your answer quickly. Either outcome will be far quicker than NHS.

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Bifanarama@reddit

Definitely worth having, if only for the peace of mind that it sounds like you also need. But be aware that your premiums will go up massively in subsequent years. That price is only to tempt you in.

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Mediocre-Spell-6090@reddit

Just had cancer diagnosed today through private healthcare. I had zero symptoms pointing to this cancer. It was accidentally found while examining other organs. I'm in my early 30s. I'd say it's 100% worth it.

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AsparagusTop795@reddit

I'm so sorry. Do you mind which health insurance provider you are with? Hope you recover from this 🙏🏽

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Mediocre-Spell-6090@reddit

AXA. With work. So far very good.

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DVLMN08@reddit

I work this in field, yes it can be worth it however if you get the cheaper end policy’s you will find cover to be limited, anything pre existing you’ll be unable to claim for, in your first few months on cover it will be difficult to claim with further information needed to ensure it’s not pre existing.

If you select what’s called a “medical history disregarded” policy which covers pre existing conditions it will be a lot easier, even then you will find a lot of hurdles to jump in certain conditions. Feel free to dm

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yourefunny@reddit

I had private health care in my teens and 20s thanks to my parents. Bupa. The speed you get seen and surgery booked in, is superb. The doctors and surgeons on the payroll are incredible. My knee surgery was with a guy in London (I was in Cambridge) who was the go to ortho surgeon to many athletes in London. Joe Worsley (England and Wasps rugby player) was leaving his office when I was going in one time and he had lots of memorabilia from Chelsea, Fulham etc.

On the other side of the coin a surgeon completely fucked my wrist and 20 years later it still hurts like hell. NHS have tried to fix it but no luck. As well as that most big time surgeries are handed off to the NHS.

But as you have the health anxiety I think having the option and the availability of such good docs as well as the speed you will be seen is well worth the money to you.

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Low_Bandicoot2030@reddit

I have health insurance through my work, I've only had to claim it once but it was absolutely worth it. I needed ingrown toenail surgery and had been on an NHS waiting list for about a year and just been bumped back to step one because my consultant left the NHS. I raised the claim through my insurance, visited a consultant by the end of the week, and had my surgery a few weeks later. All with a way better standard of care than I've had with the NHS.

I was expecting the bill to be huge, but it's nothing like American healthcare in the country, even going private. I had several meetings with my consultant, and afternoon in a private hospital room and the surgery. Total cost to my insurance was about £1,200, total cost to me was absolutely nothing.

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missuseme@reddit

I have it through work and the quick access to online GP appointments is great. I found something untoward with my body on a Friday night and had a video appointment at 10am on Saturday. I wouldn't have even been able to put a request for an appointment with my NHS GP until Monday morning.

It turned out to be something that causes discomfort and occasional mild pain, but was not an overall risk to my health. The NHS would have said to just leave it and come back if it gets worse. I had an operation privately to fix it, rather than just living with it.

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GooseyDuckDuck@reddit

I get private healthcare through work, and never really thought about it until I needed a small operation - from going to see my GP, getting the referral, and the operation it was all done in under 2 weeks.

For me that made it worth the small amount of additional tax I pay.

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Affectionate-Fish681@reddit

I’m a consultant in the NHS. I have had private health insurance for many years. Highly recommend getting it. If you have anything you’re worried about you can get a GP appointment same day, specialist appointment within a week and potentially surgery/other intervention within a couple of weeks. You don’t want to be waiting months/years on the NHS waiting list

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my-comp-tips@reddit

I suffer from health anxiety too, so If you can afford it do it. Not used private health care, but I should imagine its a lot more chilled. NHS feels rushed.

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Optimal_Collection77@reddit

Once you've had any minor experience with private you honestly wouldn't want to go to the NHS (as amazing as the staff are). It's the difference in something running well verses full on panic mode

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Maleficent-Win-6520@reddit

Bupa is the only one worth looking at. Not cheap. I’ve used private health care but the NHS service was better.

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Substantial-Bug-4998@reddit

Yes and no.

My wife has a heart condition and is treated with 3 very expensive medications through the NHS that an accountant at a health insurance company would never sign off.

Conversely, I had extreme back pain the last 2 weeks, called bupa who got me in for a consult and an mri in 3 days.

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HopeSpringsHere@reddit

I went through Usay compare - a guy called David Skipp - who did all the estimates across schemes on the phone. Went with Bupa as you get mental health cover and also any claims are not a percentage of the entire premium year on year which they were with AXA and I was furious that insurance had effectively more than doubled over a few years. Bupa have been v good so far. It’s definitely worth it. But don’t claim unless you have to!

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Zealousideal-Habit82@reddit

I have BUPA through work and have had to use them this year and it's been a game changer. Worth it in my opinion.

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crqmaa@reddit

Have you heard of bupa? It’s very good

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wowurawesome@reddit (OP)

Yes that is who I was looking at, quoted between £60-£80 depending on options I pick

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SpunkSacks@reddit

My advice would be to go through a broker. There is no discount for direct and you benefit from expertise and market knowledge.

More importantly mine has moved me about to save money and got me discounts on renewal.

Call one. I called 3 or 4 before it clicked they were all telling me the same thing and selling me the same policies at the same prices.

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crqmaa@reddit

Definitely go for it a lot of NHS Doctors and staff use them they’re worth it

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Specialist_-Berry@reddit

I used to have private health with my last job. I needed a scan so I called up a clinic on a Friday afternoon of a bank holiday weekend and I was having the scan taken on the Saturday morning. It is incredibly dignified.

I only ever used it in the UK but the policy was for any doctor in any country, no out of pocket expenses on anything.

I only found out when I left that job how much that insurance cost. I had the option to continue paying for it when I resigned, USD600 per month!

I guess my point is, you will also get what you pay for as with anything in life. If you can get a job that provides it as a perk, you'll probably get a better deal.

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Christine4321@reddit

Look at Benenden Health. Theyre not private health like BUPA but they step in where delays occur…..which is the biggest issue we now have with the NHS. Theres an initial exclusion period where you are only eligible for certain services, but once a member for a period of time, the you have access to all the diagnostic and surgical stuff too. Theres also no restrictions on age, existing conditions etc.

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PayApprehensive6181@reddit

Does your workplace offer it?

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wowurawesome@reddit (OP)

No unfortunately, only the really senior people get it 💀

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hushlittlebabby@reddit

I have it through work. It’s very good for getting the diagnostics done and for minor routine procedures. Anything serious or specialized, you’re better off with the NHS route.

Example - I had a concern with my breast and I was worried it was cancer. GP gave me an appointment for two weeks’ time, who knows when any scans would have been scheduled after that. I called my private health provider (Vitality), and I was seen by a consultant the next day who gave me a mammogram and ultrasound on the same day, then gave me the all clear right after.

If nothing else, private healthcare will buy you the peace of mind quickly.

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wowurawesome@reddit (OP)

This is a really helpful example, and TBH cancer cover is the thing I’m really keen on

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ThrowRAkitty13@reddit

I have it through work but it's been helpful for getting me seen and thoroughly investigated and treated, all in a reasonable time frame, for issue the NHS ignored

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OohRahMaki@reddit

I had a bad experience during my NHS labour/birth and realised I never ever ever want to be on a communal ward.

I also have heard a lot of bad things about diagnostics and accessing consultants within a reasonable timeframe via NHS.

I also shop around and make sure I am only paying for what I want. So for me it is worth it.

I would say our local private hospital is busier than it used to be (due to overspill from NHS) and husband had to wait 2 months for a non-urgent foot op. Scans and consultant were within the first couple of weeks. But just to see the initial consultant on the NHS was over a year so still pretty good.

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