What is Health Insurance?
Health insurance, private medical insurance (PMI) and private healthcare are all interchangeable words for the same thing – an insurance policy that pays out for private medical treatment in the event that you are injured or become ill.
The benefits of such a policy are clear, instant access to private medical healthcare treatment, outside of the NHS, with no waiting lists. Instead of the policy paying you; the policy pays the hospital or clinic directly for any diagnostics or treatment you receive as a result of injury or illness.
We are fortunate to have a world class National Health Service that does fantastic work every day, however waiting lists for conditions are unavoidable, bearing in mind the number of people the NHS treats. Private health insurance is designed to compliment NHS treatment rather than replace it and it takes the strain off of the NHS, allowing those that can afford cover to seek private healthcare treatment instead of state funded.
Usually Private Medical Insurance consists of core cover and additional add ons, which cost more but provide extra cover.
Core Cover
Private medical insurance cover usually consists of;
Out-patient cover – when you visit the hospital and return home the same day. Cost of the consultations with Drs and clinicians, diagnostic tests and scans, surgical procedures and rehabilitation treatment such as physiotherapy are normally covered by the policy.
In-patient cover – when you are admitted to hospital and stay overnight. The cost of private hospital accommodation (usually your own private room), consultants, clinicians, surgeons and anaesthetists fees, scans, tests and rehabilitation are all usually covered.
All insurers have lists of approved hospitals from which you can choose to attend when you claim on your private medical insurance policy. Some insurers will also take into account a no claims discount, reducing the level of premium each year if no claims are made on the private medical insurance policy.
To reduce the cost of premiums you could also elect to pay an excess per year or on each claim made against the policy.
If you’re fit and healthy, your private medical insurance policy commonly covers sports injuries, cancer diagnosis and treatment, heart disease treatment and aftercare, most surgical procedures, private GP consultations, diagnostic tests and scans, hospital and consultant/clinicians fees.
Extra Cover
Dental – private medical insurance policies usually exclude dental treatment as standard. However you can opt to include general dental treatments such as fillings, crowns, accident dental damage and dental emergencies at additional cost.
Optical – again optical cover is usually excluded on standard policies, for extra cost the private medical policy can be upgraded to cover eye tests, spectacles, contact lenses and general optical costs.
Worldwide Cover – most policies cover treatment in the UK as standard, but you can normally upgrade the policy to cover you for worldwide treatment if you travel frequently.
Therapies – some insurers include holistic therapy, osteopathy and chiropractor treatment at additional cost.
Mental Illness – additional cover for diagnosis and treatment of mental health conditions.
Years of Experience Giving Health Insurance Advice
We are totally independent, whole of market financial advisors. When you contact us for a private medical insurance quote you will have access to experts who know the industry inside out. We know the key differences between policies, and we are able to fine-tune the best private medical insurance policy to your specific needs.
It may seem easy to narrow down the best policies on your own. After all, who knows your own medical needs better than yourself? However, accessing health insurance advice on behalf of professional services will allow you to narrow down your options to the very best in the market. Crucially, you might be missing out on policies and services that you are quick to overlook. Our in-depth market knowledge allows us to quickly select the most appropriate cover to suit your needs.
Best of all, as the insurer pays us a commission – the cost of seeking expert health insurance advice on private medical insurance is cost free to you.
Fine Print Analysis
Anyone who has ever had to look for private medical insurance before will know that policies and plans often arrive with plenty of fine print. There’s little wonder – as these documents and arrangements are legally binding. However, navigating the reams of important documents likely to affect you in the long run isn’t always a simple process. Even if you have even a simple grasp of legalese, there’s still the fact that you are going to need to spend plenty of time and effort poring through terms to make sure that you are getting involved with the best possible policies and terms.
At Milestone we will happily look through terms and summarise each policy to allow you to easily compare levels and cost of cover. This means that, rather than having to sift through walls of text which may not make much sense to the layman, you can instantly rely on our expert knowledge to help narrow down your choices.
A Bespoke Deal
When initially shopping around for private medical insurance, it may seem at first that there is little in the way of wiggle room for some products and policies. Therefore, you might be put off by the rigidity of some of the details and terms you are expected to enter into. However, with the best health insurance advice, you can be sure that you are setting up a completely bespoke plan of action.
By approaching Milestone in the first instance, you will have access to professional advisors who will tailor insurance searches and plans based around your needs and expectations. Therefore, instead of having to fit yourself into an insurance provider’s box, you can tailor their boxes to your needs. We use state of the art research tools, as well as years of dedicated expertise, to ensure that our clients receive bespoke deals that directly benefit them in the long run.
Call the Team
Milestone Financial Planning offers a team of professional, experienced financial advisors ready to take on all manner of health insurance queries. We understand that entering into any kind of medical insurance plan can be a sensitive process. That’s why we aim to make discussions as straightforward as possible.
What’s more, we always want to ensure that you have access to the very best in advice and tools to compare between policies. These are always going to be your best routes towards finding the perfect policy that fits.
Everyone’s health insurance needs are different. We understand this only too well! Therefore, do make sure to get in touch with us on 01246 903053 for a no obligation quote an to learn more about how we can help you find the best health insurance cover for your needs.
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