Ways to enhance or reduce your health insurance

When you apply for our health insurance, you can enhance or reduce your core cover, depending on your budget, and what’s important to you. 

But if you’re not sure about the difference between our cover levels, and what your options are, this overview will help. Don’t forget to read the policy documents, which explain your options in full.

Here’s the core cover that all levels of our health insurance include:

Acute conditions

Our health insurance is designed for new diseases, illnesses and injuries likely to respond quickly to treatment.These are known as acute conditions – so things like elbow pain and respiratory infections. Once treated, the aim is for a full recovery, or to get you back to how you were just before you had that condition.

Inpatient hospital charges and specialist fees 

If you’re admitted to hospital as an inpatient, your meals, accommodation, nursing care, drugs, dressings and theatre fees for eligible treatment will be covered. Though if you choose the six-week option, we’ll only cover inpatient and daypatient treatment if you can’t get NHS treatment within six weeks.

Cancer care

If you’re diagnosed with cancer, we’ll pay hospital charges for surgery and medical admissions. Treatment – including radiotherapy, chemotherapy and bone strengthening drugs – is also covered, along with a wig and external prostheses costs.

Outpatient treatment

Outpatient consultations and treatment with a specialist are included, as well as diagnostic tests like blood tests, X-rays and scans, some therapies including physiotherapy, osteopathy and chiropractic, and some mental health support. 

Inpatient and daypatient treatment

We'll pay for things like hospital charges, specialist fees, diagnostic tests or an NHS cash benefit, if you stay in an NHS bed overnight.

Here's what else is included with our core cover:

• Home nursing
  
• Private ambulance
• Parent accomodation, if your child's 15 years or younger and is receiving eligible treatment in hospital
• Hospice donation of £70 each day, for up to 10 days
• GP-referred speech therapy for children, for up to two sessions
• Baby bonus of £100 for each baby born or adopted within a year of birth
• NHS cash benefit of £100 per night, for up to 30 nights. Though if you choose the NHS six-week option, this benefit isn’t available if you can get your treatment on the NHS within that time 
• Stress Counselling helpline

You can choose to enhance your core cover with any of these add-ons:

• Dental and optical cover: for accidental dental injury, routine dental treatment and optical expenses
• Mental health: inpatient and daypatient treatment for acute mental health conditions
• Extended hospital list: upgrade from our Expert Select hospital option or Key hospital list to our Extended hospital list, to include extra hospitals in Greater London 
• Other treatments and therapies: GP-referred physiotherapy, osteopathy, chiropractic and acupuncture, for things like sports injuries and whiplash after an accident
• Protected no claim discount

Reduce your premiums by removing or changing these benefits:

• Six-week option: inpatient and daypatient care if treatment on the NHS isn’t available within six weeks
• Policy excess: pay a set amount towards the cost of a claim
• Less extensive hospital option: choose from our Signature hospital list, if you live in Scotland or Northern Ireland, or our Trust hospital list that includes NHS Trust and Partnership private hospital units, if you live within the catchment area
• Reduced outpatient cover: you can choose to reduce your outpatient cover to lower your premiums.

Knowing the difference is key when it comes to understanding what your policy covers, so here’s a refresher: 

• Daypatient: this is where you don’t need to stay overnight in hospital for your treatment, though you may need a day bed if you have minor surgery
  
• Inpatient: this is if you’re admitted to a hospital ward for treatment and care, and need a bed for a night or more while you get tests, treatment or surgery
• Outpatient: this is when you go to hospital for an appointment, but you don’t need a bed, or to stay overnight

As you can see, you get plenty of options to personalise your policy. 

If you can’t decide whether to enhance or  reduce your cover, think about what you’re most concerned about when it comes to your health and healthcare. Is a fast diagnosis high on your list? Are you happy to use the NHS for some services, if you can be seen within six weeks? If budget is a deciding factor, try adding or removing options when you get a quote to see how it impacts your premiums.

You’ll find more in-depth information about what our policy covers in our Healthier Solutions Healthier Solutions brochure (PDF 4.98 MB) and Insurance Production Information Document (PDF 98 KB).

If you have any questions about our cover, just call us on 0800 015 9830, and we’ll be happy to help ^{Footnote [1]}.