Comprehensive Health Insurance

Comprehensive health insurance provides greater peace of mind knowing that all eligible inpatient, day-patient, outpatient and associated healthcare services are covered. Most reputable medical insurance policies will cover eligible inpatient healthcare where a hospital bed is required, whether on a basic or comprehensive plan.

The real difference in the level of cover provided is with regard to outpatient healthcare (where a hospital bed is not required) and the additional benefits provided by the policy. Comparisons of these differences are set out below, both for outpatient cover and associated benefits.

Consultations
With comprehensive health plans all outpatient consultations with a specialist are covered in full, and there are generally no limits imposed on the number of eligible consultations. More basic plans provide no cover at all or will limit the cover provided to around two consultations per policy year and they usually have to be in relation to an inpatient treatment.

MRI, CT and PET Scans
Nearly all comprehensive policies cover these scans in full and without restriction. About half of basic plans cover these scan in full with the other half imposing certain limits or providing no cover at all.

Other diagnostic tests
Practically all comprehensive plans will cover other diagnostic tests in full and without restriction. A very limited number of basic plans provide full cover with the vast majority imposing specific monetary or impatient restrictions, and some plans providing no cover at all.

Radiotherapy and Chemotherapy
Radiotherapy and Chemotherapy relate to the treatment of cancer. Most basic plans and nearly all comprehensive plans provide cover in full.

Physiotherapy
Although some comprehensive medical plans provide full cover for physiotherapy most policies will limit the cover provided to around 12 sessions or £500 per policy year. A number of basic plans provide no physiotherapy cover at all or typically limit the cover provided to less that £500 per policy year for conditions relating to inpatient treatment only.

Psychiatric healthcare
With comprehensive health plans around a third of policies provide full cover for psychiatric care, another third provide cover of around £1,000 per policy year and the final third provide no cover. The vast majority of basic plans provide no cover and the ones that do impose financial limits.

Alternative medicines
Alternative medicines relate to osteopathy, acupuncture and homeopathy. Although some comprehensive policies provide full cover for alternative medicines the vast majority impose limits of between £250 and £1,000 per policy year. Practically no basic plans provide benefit for alternative medicines.

Other benefits
The vast majority of comprehensive policies will provide full cover for home nursing, whereas basic plans often impose inpatient and financial restrictions or no cover at all.

Roughly half of comprehensive plans will provide benefit for dental/oral surgery, whereas most basic plans provide no benefit. Both types of plans generally provide some degree of cover for the use of a private ambulance, with most comprehensive medical insurance plans providing full cover.   

When it comes to selecting your ideal health insurance plan it is possible to identify the types of cover most important to you from the list above, and then selecting a policy that best fits your requirements.

In addition to these options there are a number of important choices to make which can be included in your policy, usually with an additional premium required. These options are set out below.

Routine dental and optical
A number of policies allow you to include routine dental and optical healthcare to your plan for an additional premium of approximately £10 per month. The benefit provided usually comes in the form of a cash plan, setting out a specified pot of 'cash' for you to use throughout the year. It should be noted that this bolt-on typically comes with separate excesses.

Overseas cover
Although overseas cover is not generally an added extra, a very small number of comprehensive health insurance plans include this benefit as part of the policy. If you travel overseas regularly it might be worth selecting a policy that includes overseas cover.

Upgrade Hospital list
For an increase in premium it is possible to upgrade your hospital list to a premier list or a London list. The London list provides access to an increased number of London hospitals as compared to a standard national list.

With the premier list you can receive treatment at practically any hospital in the United Kingdom, including top specialist and London hospitals. Upgrading to a premier hospital list usually increases monthly premiums by approximately 30%.

Family health cover
When taking out a medical insurance plan it is possible to add family members to your policy, which may include your partner, children and, potentially, your grandchildren.

In many cases individuals wishing to temporarily reside or permanently reside in the UK will often to be required to provide documentary proof that you hold sufficient health cover in the form of comprehensive sickness insurance.

A comprehensive plan is designed to ensure any medical treatment that is required whether inpatient or outpatient treatment can take place privately without requiring the services of the NHS. All of the leading UK health insurers offer some form of comprehensive cover although they can still vary quite considerably in the policy coverage so do ensure you read the policy terms, the devil is in the detail.

To ensure you decide upon a policy which meets the requirements for individuals wishing to temporarily or permanently reside in the UK please do not hesitate to give us a call or pop us an email.

If you are looking for individual health cover and would like more information, some advice or health insurance quotes comparing the leading UK insurers then please do not hesitate to get in touch. We are here to help, our aim is simply to make personal insurance simple and affordable.