You can never be certain when your health might take a turn for the worse unexpectedly and if you then need expensive remedial and ongoing treatment it can be worry about how you are going to pay for all your medical expenses.
Private health insurance is designed to try and provide for your medical needs in certain circumstances and give you some peace of mind when you know that you have got cover if you need it, but what are the specific benefits attached to this type of insurance?
Here is a look at some of the key benefits attached to having private health insurance so that you can make an informed decision on whether this is something you want to arrange for you and your family.
Getting the medical help you need without a long wait
There are a number of good reasons why you might want to have private health insurance and one of them is the fact that your cover can often allow you to avoid going on a hospital waiting list for any length of time.
Public hospital waiting lists can be quite long depending on the type of surgery that you are wanting to have and how urgent the treatment or surgery is perceived to be.
If you are waiting for elective surgery, which is any surgery that is deemed as not immediately necessary from a medical perspective, you could be waiting for some while to get something like a cataract removed.
It is not uncommon for patients to wait a year or longer for elective surgery in a public hospital, despite the fact that you might be in pain or experiencing a reasonable level of discomfort.
A key benefit of having private health insurance in this scenario is that you might be able to skip the waiting list and you will be given a date for the procedure that should give you comfort that there is a resolution in sight.
Privacy when you need it
Public hospitals can have large wards and it is quite likely that you may have to share a room with a number of other patients who may be suffering from a variety of different ailments.
This can actually be a bit stressful in its own right as you might not be able to relax and recuperate in the way you want.
Having health insurance can often mean that you can request your own private room. This is a benefit that is viewed as more important than you might imagine until you experience it for yourself.
Enjoying a private room can be much more conducive toward a faster recovery after surgery, so it is a benefit that is well worth considering when you are considering whether to get cover.
The chance to consult with your chosen surgeon or doctor
You can’t be certain of getting your chosen medical professional to carry out an operation, even when you have private health insurance, but efforts are often made to try and accommodate your requirements when you go private.
Continuity is another factor to consider when you are receiving ongoing treatment and seeing the same doctor or surgeon is possible with private health insurance, provided that person is available when you need them.
Extra care to help you stay on top of your health
There are a number of additional services and therapies available that can help you recover quicker from your surgery but this extra care is not always offered to patients who do not have private health insurance.
You might need nursing care at home or extra help with physiotherapy or other therapies such as osteopathy, or antenatal and postnatal care.
Having access to these extras could make all the difference to your long-term recovery and that is why it is worth checking whether you can gain access to these additional services as part of insurance coverage.
Contribute to the improvement of the public health system
It may not be an immediately obvious benefit at first but if you can afford to take out private health insurance and pay to access the private medical system you will be reducing demand on the public health system.
With every person who is investing in private health insurance, it is potentially improving the prospect of better services for those that are using the public system.
So you get the benefit of priority treatment and make a positive contribution toward reducing the strain on public health at the same time.
Access to dental treatment
You can’t easily predict what sort of medical problems you might experience during your lifetime and that is one of the primary reasons why you might want to have insurance cover so that you have that peace of mind of knowing that you should be able to get the treatment you need when you need it.
One aspect of your medical care that is often overlooked is dental care, but this is an area where bills can rack up pretty quickly if you don’t have suitable coverage.
Dental treatments can sometimes be covered by private health insurance and that is a benefit that should not be overlooked when you consider how likely it is that you might need dental treatment at some point.
Potential savings in the long run
Having health insurance cover comes at a cost and you will need to be able to afford to make monthly payments to maintain your cover.
However, the money you pay out for this cover could potentially be much less than if you face an unforeseen medical situation at some point and require expensive surgery and treatment that you have to pay for yourself.
It is possible that your insurance cover payments turn out to be good value for money in those circumstances. If you already have health insurance, you should have an insurance card that has key information like Rx BIN, Rx Grp, which tells you what, and how much you are covered for.
Your health is an important topic and that is why it could be worthwhile to weigh up the pros and cons of private health insurance and check free insurance guides to see if it might be the right option for you and your family.
