Health Insurance?

Gael23

Gael23 wrote: »

Health insurance is next to food for me. That one thing no matter what I'll always find a way of hanging on to.

http://www.rte.ie/news/2015/1204/751268-cancer/

And this is why

Stheno

So my OH got told by his local hospital that the growth on his face that may be cancerous will be seen by a consultant in two years time

Eire Go Brach

For me it's like gambling. You could live all your life and not get sick. So then you save a fortune. But you get sick every 2 years it's worth it. I'm 38. Never been seriously ill. So I saved money. Even if I break a Leg tomorrow I would have saved money.
I do have insurance though. Girlfriends company pays it. But I'd never pay for it myself. I have barely used it in the last 5 years. But it's good for her. She has a peanut allergy.
I often wonder if she took me off it. Would it make a big difference to her BIK.

Voodoomelon

I'm 31, been paying for VHI since I was 18 and continue to do so. I hate paying it, but I hold onto it because I can afford it and cancer/serious illness worries me. Based on waiting times members of my family have had to endure on the public system, I ain't waiting around to get a proper diagnosis and treatment if god forbid the day ever comes.

For most other ailments, its a pretty useless thing to have.

YFlyer

worded wrote: »

I know two famalies

First rich. Have 4 kids. To start with there is no private kids hospital so that's a total scam. They were never able to recoup any med expenses for anything. Cancelled all policy's. very intelligent people - both famalies

Family 2. Well off. 0 cover. Husband needed heart bypass and promptly got it.

Holiday ins - yes

Med insurance - save your € and use that pool to go see consultants when you need them. They love cash

The scare tactics used on multiple ads on TV are disgusting.
You pay or die on a trolley.

On my above post when I told them I'd feel healthier after a holiday with a cancelled ins policy, she laughed.

I've wasted so so much money on med Bull sh1t

If everyone young cancelled / didn't sign up the govt would have to act.

Instead its dirty scare tactics.

I'm 43 and have no health insurance.

I spend my money on staying healthy. Run 6 days a week. Transcendental meditation twice a day. Vegetarian diet and follow to some degree an ayurveda routine.

I said to myself 'most illness don't hit you with a bang, its built up from an improper lifestyle.' So have a regulsr routine such as eating healthy and bed early.

Any running injuries I get I either rest up or go to a physio the rare time.

If you can afford health insurance and you don't have it your an idiot simple as that.

MadDog76

Chanel Faint Saxophonist wrote: »

If you can afford health insurance and you don't have it your an idiot simple as that.

If you can't afford health insurance and you have it your an idiot simple as that.

coffeepls

This subject of having or not having private health insurance has been bashed about before.

Yes, you can live in this country with no health insurance. If you have a sudden emergency you will end up in A&E and it doesn't matter a jot if you have insurance or not. You'll queue like every other Joe Soap unless you're critical, and in that case you'll jump the queue regardless of your insurance status.

If you have cancer, there's no difference in the drugs you can get in a public or private hospital. This is also true. Once they've reached a diagnosis that is. Of course the drugs are the same once they know what they're treating.

Unfortunately for many people it's not a critical injury that happens, it's some little niggly health issue that you went to the GP about, that turns out to be a lot more serious.

I'm delighted that people are looking after their well being and I hope that they will remain healthy. I was healthy, rarely ill, and went to the doc with what I'd call a 'trivial' cold with an irritating cough this time last year. After my third visit to the GP in a month I was referred to the hosp for an X-ray. From those results the hosp wanted me to have a ct scan. Then the fun started. Diagnosis is a process of elimination by doing various tests. There are queues in the public health for every type of scan or consultant. You're not that special just because you're out of your mind with worry. I didn't have an iota I'd advanced cancer.

That's when private health kicks in. You can get all those scans & tests done practically on demand. You're a paying customer after all. There are private hospitals and clinics that are solely for the paying customer. You don't need health insurance if you are ok with forking out. I think at a rough guess my health insurance has paid for 30k of treatment this year.

manonboard

I previously detested it. Thought it was a scam.. seemed to just be taking my money and bare any returns.

My mothers condition (gall bladder issue) was not covered as it was pre existing...
3-4 years of constant appointments. Not even on the surgery list..was told its about 1-2 years when she gets on that list...

Gave Laya a call, they decided to cover it, took a great attitude of letting it go longer sure just makes it worst and could be more expensive then. Were lenient on the waiting times to cover because of the corporate plan I had my mother on.

1 Month later and she is due in for surgery on Wednesday in the black rock clinic. The end of her suffering hopefully.

I will never again be without health insurance. For some things its useless.. for others.. its like skipping the queue because your the $urgeon'$ new be$t friend!
The difference can be immense.

manonboard

coffeepls wrote: »

This subject of having or not having private health insurance has been bashed about before.

Yes, you can live in this country with no health insurance. If you have a sudden emergency you will end up in A&E and it doesn't matter a jot if you have insurance or not. You'll queue like every other Joe Soap unless you're critical, and in that case you'll jump the queue regardless of your insurance status.

If you have cancer, there's no difference in the drugs you can get in a public or private hospital. This is also true. Once they've reached a diagnosis that is. Of course the drugs are the same once they know what they're treating.

Unfortunately for many people it's not a critical injury that happens, it's some little niggly health issue that you went to the GP about, that turns out to be a lot more serious.

I'm delighted that people are looking after their well being and I hope that they will remain healthy. I was healthy, rarely ill, and went to the doc with what I'd call a 'trivial' cold with an irritating cough this time last year. After my third visit to the GP in a month I was referred to the hosp for an X-ray. From those results the hosp wanted me to have a ct scan. Then the fun started. Diagnosis is a process of elimination by doing various tests. There are queues in the public health for every type of scan or consultant. You're not that special just because you're out of your mind with worry. I didn't have an iota I'd advanced cancer.

That's when private health kicks in. You can get all those scans & tests done practically on demand. You're a paying customer after all. There are private hospitals and clinics that are solely for the paying customer. You don't need health insurance if you are ok with forking out. I think at a rough guess my health insurance has paid for 30k of treatment this year.

This persons view is spot on i think.

Shield

I'm on the North side of the Irish border, so my view on this is informed only by my experiences in this part of the island.

We have very competitive private healthcare insurance. It's not a matter of if you're going to get injured in this job, it's when. When we do get injured, we have a private hospital, a private A&E, private GPs who will see us on the same day, and private Consultants who fix us up, and private Physiotherapists who see us through to fast recovery.

There's no way we'd get that on the NHS. They just don't have the resources, and I suspect the same is true with the HSE.

-Shield.

zarquon

smash wrote: »

I know cancer patients who have used both the public and private healthcare system and the only difference is the room you get. Private patients don't get priority on MRI or CT machines when it comes to cancer. Even with the room, if you're in danger of catching infection you will get a room on your own anyway.

That's not entirely true. As a sufferer myself, yes the treatment is the same in a public hospital but there are times when health insurance allows for quicker access to routine scans such as PET, MRI and CT via private hospitals. Also there are certain treatments and surgeries that i can obtain quicker in private hospital due to a lack of beds in the public system which causes significant delays in treatment.

If you do suffer from serious long term illness such as cancer which requires on going regular and diverse health care, it is best to have the option of having both public and private access to obtain best overall levels of care

I'm early thirties, 2 years ago i thought health insurance was a waste of money for me personally and i considered getting rid of it, 1 year later and i was depending on it to prolong my life. No one knows what life may throw at you. Insurance of any type is a waste of money if you never need a claim. Car Insurance is invaluable if you write off an expensive car, house insurance is invaluable if your house burns down and health insurance is invaluable if your health takes an unexpected and severe hit.

No one is immune to health issues, my experiences have taught me that health insurance is one of the most important things to have in life. Anyone that thinks or says otherwise is a naive fool playing roulette with their own life

zarquon

MadDog76 wrote: »

If you can't afford health insurance and you have it your an idiot simple as that.

Nonsense. Anyone that truly can't afford it will have a medical card. Then's there's next stratus of people who say they can't afford it, but yet can afford to go out regularly and/or get sky/upc in and/or go on a nice holiday every year as well as many other frivolities that people deem "essential. A lot of people cannot differentiate between "needs" and "wants" and thus prioritise the wrong things.

Simply put, people that supposedly can't afford it are just prioritising the wrong things. Your health is everything, i can attest to that as someone who has lost it. Put a roof over your head, put food on the table and heat in the home, and then get health insurance. Everything else pales in importance and only naive and foolish people think otherwise. You may get lucky and the gamble pay off with good health. But you could be unlucky and find yourself screwed by the messed up public health system we have here.

coffeepls wrote: »

I think at a rough guess my health insurance has paid for 30k of treatment this year.

Mine has paid for in excess of that. Sure, going public would cut a lot of that out but having insurance means being able to skip certain queues. Most importantly, like you my Insurance was the reason i got a quick diagnosis albeit late due to my own foolishness in ignoring seemingly unimportant "niggles". Without insurance my niggles would have been taking much longer to diagnose and i'd already be dead.

I can't emphasise enough how foolish it is for someone who can afford health insurance to spend it on something else.

Rented Mule

SEPT 23 1989 wrote: »

It all boils down to the type of room you would like to die in

Dude. You just blew my mind.

ianobrien

I was always wondering why I was getting health insurance but I got it every year. Then, last year I injured my shoulder and had to go to A&E. No big deal as its all through the public side, or so I thought.

That was until the consultant wanted an MRI done on the shoulder. If I kept going public it would have been two weeks (and the shoulder could have started to heal wrong). As I had insurance, I got the MRI done the following day. If surgery was needed, there was a waiting list for that but as I had the insurance, I could go private straight away. Thankfully no surgery was needed.

That day reinforced for me that you never know when you need the health insurance.

coffeepls

zarquon wrote: »

I can't emphasise enough how foolish it is for someone who can afford health insurance to spend it on something else.

It's as you say - playing roulette with your health. Ah zarquon, I can't stress it enough. But you and I both know it falls on deaf ears.

After I got ill the amount of my relatives & friends who suddenly looked at health insurance with a different light!

This country has a definite 2-tier system. People honestly have no idea how bad the waiting times are till they are there. There is nothing in the world as bad as knowing that while you wait for a solid diagnosis, doctors have their hands tied as to how to treat you. Even with a solid diagnosis, a person could still be in for a wait for an operation or to see a consultant. Depends on whether it's life threatening or just debilitating. In the public health system you are not a person, you're a category. Complain all you want - be a diva - it won't matter.

You just can't wait till you need it to suddenly get health insurance. That's a bit like saying you won't get car insurance till someone crashes into your car.

Gael23

Someone mentioned that if you have Cancer you get the same drugs public or private. Yes you do but if you have to wait 3 months for s diagnosis, it's likely going to be too late for those drugs to help

Tarzana2

coffeepls wrote: »

I didn't have an iota I'd advanced cancer.

That's when private health kicks in. You can get all those scans & tests done practically on demand. You're a paying customer after all. There are private hospitals and clinics that are solely for the paying customer. You don't need health insurance if you are ok with forking out. I think at a rough guess my health insurance has paid for 30k of treatment this year.

I also have advanced cancer and when it's advanced, you automatically get a medical card. I've paid nothing for my treatment this year. But if you have an earlier stage cancer, you don't get the card and I'd say the costs then rack up. It's crazy because early stage is the critical time when you need loads of treatment as you are hopefully shooting for a cure at that stage. I honestly think all cancer patients should get a medical card. Imagine the stress of being diagnosed with cancer and then having loads of financial worry on top of that? I'm so glad I never had to think about the money side of it.

Unfortunately, I've never been able to afford health insurance. I think if you can afford it, get it. Nobody knows when their health will turn.

I would have gladly paid out of my pocket for the triple breast assessment that might have saved my life, if I'd had any inkling it might be cancer. Money well spent, it would have been!

worded

I wonder if the insurance companies give the news presenters and camera men a kick back for mentioning people on trolliies in hospitals.

It's certainly a marketing idea.

And remember - this could be you. Call now and give us your money.

For those who are not falling for the scam could they just offer very very basic plans ......

Like a wider trolley in a public hallways of a private hospital
A thicker mattress as above
A half memory foam trolley with a little drinks cabinet built in under it

Or the delux trolley plan ....

A motorised trolley to get you around the hospital

animaal

BattleCorp wrote: »

I reckon the over 35 rule will have unintended consequences. It was meant to encourage everybody to rush out and take out health insurance. What it probably does is stop the majority of over 35's from ever taking out private health insurance.

I don't think that's unintended. The way health insurance works in this country is that the premiums paid by younger (on average healthier) people subsidise the claims made by the older (on average unhealthier) people. If somebody waits until they're middle-aged before obtaining health insurance, they're looking to have their private healthcare subsidised, without having paid into the scheme beforehand. The other members of the scheme are better off if he doesn't join.

On the question of value, insurance usually isn't good value over the long term. The total paid in claims is always less than the premiums taken in. And all the more so when governments pull stunts like "This hospital bed is paid for through taxation, so we won't charge you for using it. But if you happen to have health insurance, we'll charge your insurer for it too."

In my case, I've always had health insurance. I'm now approaching an age where claims become more likely, and the value increases for me. Of course, there's always the risk that a left-leaning government will decide that it's unfair for a person to be able to pay for better healthcare.

ted1

The main difference is for elective surgeries.

in the public system it'll take years in the Private system it'll take weeks max.

as your health is your wealth, i don't mind spending some cash.

FrStone

http://www.rte.ie/tv/scannal/susielong.html

How quick people are to forget Susie Long. Her lack of health insurance certainly contributed to her death.

Any one without health insurance is foolish. I'm quite young and have always had it. I buy one with bells and whistles.

Anyone can afford €450 a year - while the plan itself won't get you much, you will be able to ship queues which is the most important part of health insurance.

Arbiter of Good Taste

I'm fed up of hearing about the "two-tier" health system. €1,200 can get you a decent enough health plan. That's €100 per month. Taking into account the medical insurance tax credit, that's probably less than one night out with dinner, a few drinks and a taxi home. Most people can find something to small sacrifice if they prioritise right.

I acknowledge that there are some people who genuinely cannot afford it, but in many cases it's less a case of the "have" vs "have nots" than the "will" vs "will nots".

Fr_Dougal

Went to A&E in a private hospital a couple of months ago, seen straight away and operated on within 2 hours. It would not have happened if I went public.

coffeepls

worded wrote: »

I wonder if the insurance companies give the news presenters and camera men a kick back for mentioning people on trolliies in hospitals.
It's certainly a marketing idea.
And remember - this could be you. Call now and give us your money.
For those who are not falling for the scam could they just offer very very basic plans ......
Like a wider trolley in a public hallways of a private hospital
A thicker mattress as above
A half memory foam trolley with a little drinks cabinet built in under it
Or the delux trolley plan ....
A motorised trolley to get you around the hospital

Totally nothing to do with healthcare insurance. Nobody gets preferential treatment in public A&E based on their insurance.
But you did mention private hospitals being luxurious. And yes they are. And when you are about to have an op or are recovering from an op it's lovely to have something nice about your predicament.

coffeepls

Tarzana2 wrote: »

I would have gladly paid out of my pocket for the triple breast assessment that might have saved my life, if I'd had any inkling it might be cancer. Money well spent, it would have been!

Hope you're keeping well T, pm me sometime. Wishing you all the best hun.

Mesrine65

I'm 50 & have never had health insurance :eek:

Reading through this thread has prompted me to purchase a plan off Laya Healthcare on a monthly direct debit, starting 01/01/2016

After shopping around, €500 a year isn't too much of a burden & it's tax deductable.

Tarzana2

coffeepls wrote: »

Hope you're keeping well T, pm me sometime. Wishing you all the best hun.

Thanks, hope you are well too!

Canadel

Arbiter of Good Taste wrote: »

I'm fed up of hearing about the "two-tier" health system. €1,200 can get you a decent enough health plan. That's €100 per month. Taking into account the medical insurance tax credit, that's probably less than one night out with dinner, a few drinks and a taxi home. Most people can find something to small sacrifice if they prioritise right.
.

When you can't even acknowledge the other tier is when you know it exists.

Voodoomelon

Just to add to my previous post, my auntie was diagnosed with a tumor on her kidney on the 27th of December last year. The consultant/surgeon she met said "well I could probably fit you in on the 2nd or 3rd of January" for surgery. Why he assumed she had health insurance I don't know. "I dont have health insurance" she said.

She was operated on in May. A bloody tumour like. That's just mental.