HEALTH HEALTH INSURANCE
nephew had trouble handling the death of his mother and suffered from stress.” The help provided by the NHS
was often not enough. “We know how good it is in an emergency,” says Alison, “but what I learned as I examined the system was that it doesn’t score well in aftercare. I’ve subsequently been told that some doctors find that frustrating as well. If your child breaks his arm playing sport, they will set the bone. But afterwards you may only get offered two or three physio sessions when what you really need is eight to 10 for maximum improvement.” Alison also points out that, due
to financial constraints, many NHS trusts operate surveillance schemes. ‘If the doctors aren’t sure whether that broken arm is a stress fracture or a sprain, they may advocate doing nothing for a few days and watching the injury. But what all of us would prefer is to get any injury examined thoroughly and immediately.” In response to these obstacles,
Alison began a collaboration with insurance giant Aviva which led to
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WHAT’S ON OFFER
AXA PPP Healthcare
First Healthcare child insurance plan (provides benefits if the NHS cannot deliver within six weeks)
Cost From £9.99 per month for one child, £8.99 per child for two or more. Key facts Parent accommodation. Outpatient consultations before diagnosis, plus surgery costs. Contact 0800 783 1279;
www.axappphealthcare.co.uk
BUPA
Children accepted separately or on parents’ policy
Cost A child on their own (aged between one and 17) is £20 per month outside London, £25 per month inside. Parents together are £100 per month, child under 17 included at no extra cost.
Key facts Immediate inpatient and outpatient care, 24-hour health helpline with qualified nurses. Cancer Promise covering all stages of cancer. Unlimited parent accommodation for hospitalised under-12s. Contact 0800 600 500;
www.bupa.co.uk
Childsure (underwritten by Aviva)
Dedicated child health insurance
Cost Varies from £13.50 per month per child to £45.50 per month for five children. Key facts 24-hour helplines (including stress counselling), routine dental care, acupuncture and osteopathy. Parent accommodation if child is under 16. Contact 08450 589859;
www.childsure.co.uk
Simply Health
Children added to parents’ policies
Cost £10 to £12 per month, per child (based on 40-year-old parents paying around £126 per month). Key fact Mutual company, so costs low. Ex-nurses employed in-house. Contact 0800 980 6243;
www.simplyhealth.co.uk
Standard Life
Flexible health care plans tailor- made for individual families
Cost Varies, due to each health plan being constructed for a family. Contact Standard Life for a quote. Key fact Plan allows you to start with ‘core health care’, then add options depending on your family’s needs. Contact 0800 33 33 31
www.standardlifehealthcare.co.uk
the launch of Childsure in September 2009 – a policy offered to children alone. “It’s fully comprehensive paediatric cover,” she explains, adding that her work has not only created a policy which parents are flocking to, but that has made private hospital groups think further about the way they treat children. Not everyone thinks the
Childsure approach is best, however. At Standard Life Healthcare, Ronjit Bose, Head of Product, explains, “We offer full cover to everyone – we don’t discriminate between children and adults.” What makes his polices work for parents is their flexibility, he says. “We don’t offer off-the-shelf products, we construct individual plans for every client. There’s a core element to it – the hospital care, and associated costs, and dental care – but we warn
people: do you really want to take out [specific] cover for psychiatric care or travel? This helps keep the cost down.” Also, helping with savings is the
“My son David
practice of charging only for the first child but not for subsequent siblings, a huge consideration if you’re a big family. Additionally, Standard Life consider your children to be dependent and therefore entitled to cover until they turn 25, regardless of whether they are still in education, as some policies dictate. But not everyone is
is sports-mad – he was always getting
injured on one pitch or another”
convinced private health cover is the best idea. Mothers discussing whether to take a
policy out for children, warned that even if your children are covered by a private policy, referrals may
not be forthcoming. One said,
“My children are covered via a policy provided by work. My eight-month- old child needs a referral but the GP said that very few paediatricians practise privately, so the referral will go down the usual NHS ✒
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SUMMER 2010 FIRST ELEVEN 57
PHOTO: ISTOCKPHOTO, NIKADA
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