Are you amongst the one-fifth (20%) of British consumers who believe that everyday Brits now need to take care of their own healthcare, by buying private medical insurance, due to ever-increasing NHS waiting times?

If so, what’s stopping you from enquiring about private medical insurance?  Could it be that you are also amongst the 29% of people (35% of women) who think you can’t afford it?  Do you believe it’s for people who are not like you?

If that’s what’s holding you back, there’s every reason to at least double-check that your views on the affordability of private healthcare are correct.  If you haven’t had a quote for private medical insurance, how do you know for sure?  Is it just your impression that it ‘must be’ expensive?  You might be pleasantly surprised at just how reasonable a policy can be.

Why NHS waiting lists make private medical insurance attractive

The reason you should at least get a quote is, of course, what’s happening within the NHS right now.  The headlines about waiting lists seems to appear on a continuous basis; the current strikes of junior doctors and consultants are simply making matters worse.  If you need to be relieved of pain or have some other form of treatment that will restore your health or quality of life, it is highly depressing to be on a list that never seems to get shorter.

On June 8, 2023, the NHS issued a statement on waiting times and statistics on referral to treatment (RTT) waiting times for consultant-led elective care.[i]

The number of RTT patients waiting to start treatment at the end of April 2023 was said to be 7.4 million.  Of those, 371,111 were waiting for more than 52 weeks, 95,135 for more than 65, 11,477 for more than 78 weeks and 523 for more than 104 weeks.  That means nearly half a million people waiting more than a year for their treatment to start and 523 waiting more than two years.

That may seem an inevitability, depending on your financial circumstances, but for many people it need not be.  By securing access to a private medical insurance policy, you could see a consultant and receive treatment far quicker for any future health issue that you suffer, getting your life back to normal, or yourself back to work, potentially much sooner.

Whilst you can’t claim for a health issue that already exists, you can try to make sure that any newly emerging health problem can receive swift attention.

Could you – and should you – help take pressure off the NHS?

Our Gauntlet Group survey, from which the statistics quoted are taken, also discovered that nearly one-in-five people (19%) believe that those who can afford to pay for private medical insurance should do so.  This is so that pressure on the NHS can be relieved.  By asking for a private healthcare quote, you could perhaps become one of those people who assists your own health and who also helps others who have no option but to rely on the NHS.

You will not know the cost of private medical insurance unless you ask, so why not do that today?  Either ring our Leeds-based team on 0113 244 8686 or use our Find a Local Broker map to find a broker you would like to talk to.

We can easily talk you through the different options available to you and explain the differences between them, the sorts of cover each can offer to you and the pricing behind them.  We can also discuss who needs to be protected by the policy and other options that you may have available to you.

With a range of policies at our fingertips, all provided by first-rate insurance providers, we should be able to find you the right policy, at the right cost.

Don’t allow external factors such as crises and strikes to push your care down a waiting list.  The answer could be in your own hands, if you have private medical insurance.

[i] https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/06/Apr23-RTT-SPN-publication-version-PDF-427K.pdf