VHI, VIVAS or BUPA?

Mrs_Doyle

Hi,

I am really sorry for posting this here, I scanned the site and couldn't find any kind of 'Health-care' forum, or even a thread on health-care to add too.

Basically, I have never had any kind of health insurance, but thanks to a bit of advice from CathyMoran, and a recent €140 GP + Prescription bill, I have decided to be a proper grown up and sign up for some cover.

However, I have not got the first clue where to start looking.

I am young, in fairly good health, no long term problems apart from asthma, and no kids (and none planned for a while to come yet). So of the big providers, which would cater best for me, and be reasonably priced?

Apologies for posting this in AH, please feel free to move to a more appropriate forum.

All advice would be much appreciated,

Thanks a million.

JohnK

I used to be with VHI but switched to Vivas because they were cheaper for the same lever of cover and would cover my eye (laser) surgery. I never actually had any problems with VHI though and I never had to claim from them so dont know how they are in that regard. I did claim from Vivas alright but there were no problems and only took 2 or 3 weeks. Suppose if your looking for the cheapest option Vivas would be the way to go although saying that I havent looked at the BUPA prices.

mike65

VHI are the legacy company in Ireland and you'll pay for thier accumulated infrastuctural "baggage", the other two are cheaper but that said its hard to make direct comparisions due to the way they cluster products and price various add ons.

I'm with BUPA for what its worth but I've yet to put them to the test!

Mike.

biko

Vhi

skywalker

I know this is probably asking how long is a piece of string, but how much are you talking for a basic level of health care for a young adult (late 20s)?

Mrs_Doyle

I'm 25, so I like to say 'mid 20's', if ya don't mind

I would be well able to pay €10-€15 a week, so I guess I would consider that amount as being reasonable.

mikemac

Mrs_Doyle wrote:

I am young, in fairly good health, no long term problems apart from asthma, and no kids (and none planned for a while to come yet). So of the big providers, which would cater best for me, and be reasonably priced?

Some would say Health Insurance is a waste of money if you're young and healthy but you could spend all day debating that.

I've been with VHI, Vivas and now BUPA/Quinn in that order.
I've never paid for it as my employers offer it as part of job
Lots of employer do this nowadays.

Only company I ever contacted was Vivas and that was for claiming €1,000 for laser eye surgury.

I'd recommend Vivas.

loyatemu

my experience is that Vivas is cheapest so go with them

if you're young and healthy with no kids, then you'll likely never use it, might as well spend as little as possible

(there was some economist guy on the radio recently arguing that you'd be better off saving the money - the amount you can be charged on the public system is capped anyway).

muppetkiller

Get a job and let them pay for it

JohnK

Mrs_Doyle wrote:

I'm 25, so I like to say 'mid 20's', if ya don't mind

I would be well able to pay €10-€15 a week, so I guess I would consider that amount as being reasonable.

I pay €41.92/month for i plan Level 2 with Vivas but I think there are cheaper options if you want them.

mike65

Due to the state of the health serivce I think the only real advantage to private insurance is queue jumping.

Mike.

J.S. Pill

If its everyday medical expenses like consultant and GP fees you're more concerned about then go for Quinn's health manager starter. What Vivas have to offer is quite pitiful and you get shafted with the out patient excess. If you only have the odd visit during the year though i'd go for a vivas plan without the GP cover or Quinn's essential plan.

No health insurance companies are going to cover prescriptions very much as the government's drug payment scheme takes care of that.

I had just typed a more detailed explanation of the above but firefox crashed on me and I lost it all...thanks Vista!

robinph

mike65 wrote:

Due to the state of the health serivce I think the only real advantage to private insurance is queue jumping.

VHI also came in quite handy for sorting me out after fecking myself up whilst on holiday as well.

Blush_01

We've been with VHI forever. I know you're only young, but they were great to have when my dad and younger brother (19) had health problems. I'm a bit jammy in that my parents still cover me under their policy (for the moment!), so I've never not had health insurance. Have you gone to the companies themselves to get quotes yet? Perhaps that might influence you a bit - see what they offer and how much they'll charge you for it.

Also, are you eligible for the GP visit card? It's means tested, but if your problem is persistent and you earn below whatever the cap is, it might be a good idea to check it out.

daveirl

This post has been deleted.

Zzippy

I've been with BUPA a few years now, cheaper than VHI for same cover. I've had to have surgery a couple of times for sports injuries and they were so easy to deal with, in fact the hospital dealt with them and all I got was a letter saying they had paid this bill on my behalf, great customer service. Once the hospital knew I had BUPA cover they were instantly more helpful too...
Not sure if the transfer to Quinn will affect their customer service, hopefully not

Fajitas!

A VHI Family plan here. Works out great.

Kintarō Hattori

J.S. Pill wrote:

the government's drug payment scheme takes care of that.

Hang on, the government paying for prescriptions? How?
I've been thinking about signing up for healthcare for the missus and myself too, so this thread is interesting reading.

CathyMoran

Delighted that you are finally getting some cover I am stuck with VHI as I have a long term illness but I have found VHI to be great but I imagine that they are expensive relative to the other providers. I chose a high policy turning 30 never imagining that I would use it and ended up needing it 2 years later - staying in St Vincent's private made a huge difference to my recovery. Mine costs less than €25 a week but do remember I am on D options which is their second highest policy, Shane is on C and pays nearly half what I do. I also find their travel insurance quite good as it offers better cover than other policies.

Fajitas!

eo980 wrote:

Hang on, the government paying for prescriptions? How?

You can sign up for the drug payment plan, meaning you only have to spend €85 a month. I signed on it quite recently...saved me a lot already.

watna

My parents pay for VHi cover for me and I've never had to use it (touch wood. What I found them good for id the travel insurance, if you have insurance with them it's a lot cheaper and it's quite comprehensive (my travel insurance includes winter sports which is what I really need it for). I persuaded my other half to get travel insurance too and he was really reluctant but he's on VHI and once he discovered the cost of adding travel insurance he wasn't so reluctant. It's very good value.

redfacedbear

eo980 wrote:

Hang on, the government paying for prescriptions? How?
I've been thinking about signing up for healthcare for the missus and myself too, so this thread is interesting reading.

You only have to spend €85 per month on prescriptions - anything over that and the Government will pick up the tab.

If it is a one off you may have to pay the full whack and reclaim the balance. (not exactly sure about this).

If you have on-going prescription expenses you can apply to HSE for a card to hand in to your chemist - then you only pay the €85 each month. At the moment you have to use the same chemist for all prescrptions in the same month.

The €85 is a family limit - so you and your wifes total expenses each month are taken into account.

stomprockin

What about a medical card? you could be eligible ! but not sure if you get the same benefits as vhi,buba?

Agent Smith

Would http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=544 not be more suitable?

Kintarō Hattori

redfacedbear wrote:

You only have to spend €85 per month on prescriptions - anything over that and the Government will pick up the tab.

If it is a one off you may have to pay the full whack and reclaim the balance. (not exactly sure about this).

If you have on-going prescription expenses you can apply to HSE for a card to hand in to your chemist - then you only pay the €85 each month. At the moment you have to use the same chemist for all prescrptions in the same month.

The €85 is a family limit - so you and your wifes total expenses each month are taken into account.

G'sss that's a great thing altogether. Thankfully though we don't have very many prescriptions. Nice to know that it exists though.

Blush_01

Stomprockin, the medical card can be pretty difficult to get. Your income would want to be pretty small, or your number of dependents pretty high. You're more likely to get a GP visit card, which covers less than the medical card but is nothing to be sneezed at at the same time.

The DPS is fantastic. The price of my inhaler practically covers the entire family's prescription costs for the month.

sioda

With Bupa myself as is my GF who was in a car smash and needed fairly major care. Cant recommend them high enough.

Had a few troubles with the HSE but Bupa sorted them.

Cost me 39.60 for their middling plan a month

stomprockin

Blush_01 wrote:

Stomprockin, the medical card can be pretty difficult to get. Your income would want to be pretty small, or your number of dependents pretty high. You're more likely to get a GP visit card, which covers less than the medical card but is nothing to be sneezed at at the same time.

The DPS is fantastic. The price of my inhaler practically covers the entire family's prescription costs for the month.

Very true bluch,i applied recently and was successful! even doh i have a
pritty good income but maybe because my wife gave birth in march and is out of work and allso i have a big mortgage?
here is the link for the means test......

http://www.medicalcard.ie/calc.htm

blondie999

I am single and in my mid twenties and with no health problems so I just wanted a basic plan that would cover me for hospital stays, which are expensive. Vivas i plan level 1 cost €360.00 per year. I've never had to claim (touch wood) from them yet so I don't know what they're customer service is like.
My parents have been with VHI all their lives and up until myself and my siblings started full time work we were included on the family plan.
Last year my sister was taken off the VHI cover and got her own individual Vivas plan. Well what did the VHI go and do?? They made a huge blunder and cancelled my parents cover (after 30years membership) instead. Only recently my mam rang about something and they had no record for them, only a record for my sister!! They admitted it was their mistake and they did not include the break in cover so they won't have any waiting period before been allowed made a claim if they did make one in the future.


i plan' level 1

* Full cover in a semi-private room in a public hospital
* Cover for neuro-surgery, cancer, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, orthopaedic and cardiac treatments
* Unique overseas cover giving you access to new or emerging surgical procedure abroad
* Comprehensive range of maternity benefits
* Comprehensive stress related and psychiatric benefits including access to St John of God hospital
* Cover for a unique range of lifestyle benefits such as health screening and laser eye surgery
* 24-hour access to our nurse-on-call service
* Cover for out patient benefits including scans and consultant fees

J.S. Pill

blondie999 wrote:

I am single and in my mid twenties and with no health problems so I just wanted a basic plan that would cover me for hospital stays, which are expensive. Vivas i plan level 1 cost €360.00 per year. I've never had to claim (touch wood) from them yet so I don't know what they're customer service is like....

...i plan' level 1

* Full cover in a semi-private room in a public hospital
* Cover for neuro-surgery, cancer, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, orthopaedic and cardiac treatments
* Unique overseas cover giving you access to new or emerging surgical procedure abroad
* Comprehensive range of maternity benefits
* Comprehensive stress related and psychiatric benefits including access to St John of God hospital
* Cover for a unique range of lifestyle benefits such as health screening and laser eye surgery
* 24-hour access to our nurse-on-call service
* Cover for out patient benefits including scans and consultant fees

If you're paying 360 a year you're on the 'me plan' level 1 rather than the 'I plan' the me plan is just a watered down version of the I plan. It cuts out maternity benifits and MRI scans.

daveirl wrote:

This post has been deleted.

If you're looking for good out-patient & consultant cover then I strongly reccomend you have a look at Quinn's Health Manager Starter. With Vivas you're only going to be covered for €55 per consultant visit (for out patient) wheras Health manager starter will cover you for up to half the cost. It works out at about 500 per year.