Why have
health insurance?
Why have Health insurance? because it pays your private medical and hospital expenses when you or your family need health care.
Health insurance protects you and your family from serious financial strain if you fall ill or are involved in an accident.
A health insurance plan will cover the cost of hospital accommodation and provide faster access to health services and treatment.
Private health insurance in Ireland is optional but can offer valuable peace-of-mind should you or a loved one fall ill.
If you live in Ireland, you are entitled to public in-patient and out-patient hospital services, although they are not always free. Extensive waiting lists can also mean you may be waiting some time to access treatment and services.
If your income is low, you may qualify for a Medical Card and will have access to most health services for free. If you don’t qualify, you are entitled to free hospital services but may have to pay for charges and GP services.
What plan is best for me?
Health insurance can be expensive. Prices continue to rise and there are hundreds of health insurance choices. There are simply too many policies on the market and this can be confusing.
In Ireland, the three health insurance providers, Irish Life Health, Laya and VHI, offers suites of plans called ‘corporate plans’. While these plans are not usually marketed to the general public, they are available to everyone and offer better health cover and better value than regular consumer plans.
It can be difficult to compare these according to like-for-like cover, especially as new plans are released and older, out-of-date policies congest the market.
If you haven’t had health insurance before and would like specialist advice about your situation, our team would only be too happy to chat about your options.
If you have health insurance, and have held the same plan for more than two years it is likely you could be paying too much. When it’s time to renew, get in touch with out team to compare your plan to achieve the best value possible.
It’s really worth shopping around when you get your yearly health insurance renewal notice, especially if your premium is paid by Direct Debit. If you don’t review your plan before your 14-day cooling-off period expires, your policy auto-renews, and you’re stuck in another 12 month contract.