Everyone has different priorities when it comes to their healthcare. People over the age of fifty in particular have different concerns and preferences concerning how they would like to be treated than someone in their twenties for example. While younger people may get a quote for private health insurance because they want to return to full health as quickly as possible, visiting times and arrangements as well as general comfort might be more important to an older person. New research carried out by Saga Health has found that 9 in 10 of over fifties would be comfortable or very comfortable with having visitors in a private healthcare room whereas only a third of them said the same about NHS facilities. Although having visitors may seem like a small thing to some people, others may consider their family with a bigger importance and could be the deciding factor into whether or not they get a quote for private medical insurance. The survey also found that over fifties would be happier for their grandchildren to visit them in a private hospital.


There are a number of benefits to having a private health insurance, the most common being quicker waiting times and being able to be treated where and when you like. However there are some advantages that may not be immediately obvious. Small factors like free car parking and unlimited visiting hours can make a big difference to some people. Some people may also find the thought of being treated on a large, sometimes mixed sex ward very intimidating, but through private healthcare you will be able to have your own room and retain some of your privacy. Little luxuries like having your own TV are sometimes not the first thing on your mind but being comfortable in your surroundings could be the first step to making a quicker recovery.

A private healthcare provider has said it will offer a premium service to private health insurance customers using it’s facilities. It comes after concerns over increasing numbers of NHS patients being admitted to private hospitals as part of a government programme to hire out a certain number of private hospital beds. The worries from paying customers, among many of those have accessed the clinics via a private medical insurance policy, was that they were receiving a very similar service to those people who were being treated at no cost to them. Now Ramsay Healthcare, has introduced a premium package for private patients using one of its 22 hospitals across England. Patients using this package will have access to many luxury benefits including a hotel style service with newspapers, gifts and a better choice of menu as well as other advantages expected with private healthcare – choice of when and where you wish to be treated and choice of consultant.


Although NHS patients will continue to be treated at the hospitals, there will be clear difference between paying and non-paying patients. While NHS patients are still likely to receive a high standard of care, they will be able to see first hand what extras are available and they are missing out on. Extra comforts can make a big difference especially when you are ill, and you may like to upgrade to a private treatment room rather than sharing with others on a ward. It may seem costly, but accessing private healthcare through private medical insurance rather than paying the fees yourself can be a very affordable way to have those little extras that make all the difference to your recovery.

One hundred people in the UK lose their sight everyday in the UK, but out of those only 8 will receive any counselling from the NHS. That’s according to the latest research from the Royal National Institute of Blind People who are concerned that many people could be at risk from conditions like depression without this help. They say that losing your sight is life changing and people often struggle to come to terms with it. Fazilet Hadi from the charity told the BBC there is "a systematic failure in the UK to provide vital support". The government say they are committed to providing help for disabled people but the RNIB say that a lot of people are left puzzled when the support they expect to receive doesn’t arrive.


Charities like the RNIB are often left to provide advice to people where other organisations like the NHS are not as effective as people might expect when their time of need comes about. Although this is one of the reasons why charities were set up in the first place, their resources cannot most of the time stretch to meet demand. The RNIB have said they can only help a third of the people who are facing losing their site under their current capabilities. This is just another example where people have to find an alternative source to the NHS to help them through their health issues and problems when they don’t feel that its services are sufficient. Getting a quote for private health insurance is the first step in ensuring that the best quality health care is available if a person would rather be treated in an alternative place to an NHS hospital or clinic.

The future of the NHS’s budget looks more and more uncertain after Conservative MPs failed to back the party’s leader David Cameron’s plans to increase funding above the rate of inflation if he comes into power at the next election. It’s starting to seem as though the health service will be one of the top issues for debate over the coming months as cuts have to be made across all areas of the economy to begin to pay back the record amounts of debt the UK is now in. Since 1997, the Labour Party have pumped billions of pounds into the NHS to try and cut waiting times and improve general conditions but now it seems that this can no longer continue and some people are worried that standards will begin to fall again. Private medical insurance may start to become an attractive option for these people to guarantee themselves high quality treatment.

David Cameron’s commitment to the NHS may have been a reassurance for those people who are concerned that budget cuts could be damaging to the level of care on offer, but now it seems he could be over-ridden by his own party. A recent poll suggests that nearly two thirds of Tory MPs do not agree with Cameron’s ideas to spend above the rate of inflation on the health service. It is starting to seem inevitable that compromises are going to have to be made within the NHS as budgets are squeezed. Some people may not like to make compromises where their health is concerned and may get quotes for private health insurance to put their mind at ease.

The government has lost millions of pounds in using private consultants to give advice to primary care trusts. The idea was aimed to save the NHS money but in fact it has cost the health service over £21 million. The figures have been released this week through Department of Health documents and just prove that the Government’s Framework for Procuring External Support for Commissioners (FESC) initiative has not achieved its goal to make efficient savings. Health publication ‘Pulse’ found that spending on private consultants had tripled over the past two years since it was launched, costing a total of £39.4 million but only bringing in £17.5 million worth of savings. This is money that could have been spent in another department of the NHS for example on buying new equipment. Dr Jonathan Fielden, chair of the BMA’s consultants committee told Pulse, “This is hundreds of millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money yet to be shown to have benefited patient care.” Despite this, the Department of Health still insists that 'tangible benefits' are being given.


Many people who turn to private medical insurance as an alternative to the NHS say that they do so because of the better access to high quality and brand new technologies available in private health care centres. The NHS is limited in providing access to these new innovative technologies because of its budget and government schemes like this one to encourage the use of private consultants where targets often get in the way. Private health insurance policies allow patients to use these top of the range facilities where they are not restricted by a budget in the same way. Being treated by the latest healthcare equipment and medicines could reduce recovery time and get patients back to full health in the shortest period possible which is inevitably a priority for most people when they undergo an operation or fall ill.

The NHS celebrated its 60th birthday last year and has long been celebrated as a successful healthcare system, widely respected by other countries across the world, especially those that can’t or don’t provide free healthcare to their people. So why should people in the UK consider private health insurance then? The fact is that 7 million people in the UK are now covered by some level of private medical insurance, may be caused by the fact that the NHS sometimes struggles to meet with demand particularly because of increased pressure from government targets. The answer for many people is to turn to the alternative.


Private health insurance allows its customers to have access to hospitals with a lower rate of superbugs like MRSA, and have facilities with the latest technology that some NHS hospitals cannot afford to provide. But they have their limitations in that emergency treatment is something they don’t have facilities for and this is where the NHS has a strong position. The ideal situation is for private medical insurance to supplement the work of the NHS which is where cash plan private medical insurance is the perfect option. It gives policy holders the option as to whether they would like to be treated in a NHS or private hospital, or even if they would like to travel abroad for their healthcare. The money they receive to help towards the cost of the treatment can then be used for travel expenses or to cover the cost of time lost off work if the patient chooses to be treated in an NHS hospital.

In these current times value for money is very important and this applies to health care as much as anything else. But according to the Daily Mail private healthcare establishments may be billing health insurance clients up to 50% more than their private clients.

Taking out private health insurance with Freedom Healthnet Ltd ensures that you are protected from this kind of unfairness because Freedom pays the cash direct to you and you approach hospitals as an independent private patient.

On the 2nd May the Daily Mail reported that a client received a bill from the Nuffield Hospital in Chichester where an MRI scan was charged at £477. Three weeks later another bill arrived for the same MRI scan for £720. The patient was asked to ignore the previous bill 'as we were unaware patient was insured.' This enormous 50% increase was drawn to the attention of the patient's insurer Western Provident Association (WPA).

Julian Stainton chief executive of WPA said,

'It beggars belief that in these times when the public demand openness, one of this country's leading charities is taking advantage of patients at their most vulnerable, charging insured patients in excess of 50% more than self-pay patients.

It is nothing more than bedside robbery for a private hospital to charge on the basis of "how much can we get away with?"'

Anthony Scrivener QC, an authority on consumer law said 'The provider is not entitled to demand to know whether you have medical insurance. It is entitled to be sure that you have the resources to pay for the treatment - usually making a credit card available will suffice.

In law every patient is a self-pay patient, irrespective of their ability to recover charges from a relative or an insurance company.'

For Freedom Healthnet clients this is not an issue. If you become ill Freedom pays the money for your inpatient treatment straight into your bank account and you have the choice to do exactly what you want with it. You can approach your preferred medical establishment and ask for discounts for your healthcare treatments as an individual private patient and then keep the change to spend on other things. Alternatively you can go abroad to be looked after or even go via the NHS and keep the cash for yourself. The choice is yours.

So, with Freedom you have the wonderful security of a private health insurance plan but you save money on two fronts:

-you get cheap health insurance because Freedom Healthnet Ltd pass on their reduced admin costs to you
- you are in control of the money you get and can therefore get better deals from the private health care providers.

Private medical insurance has many benefits, giving the British public more than one reason to enquire into a quote for private medical cover. The number of people who took out private health insurance rose in 2008 by 3.7 percent, astonishing considering the country entered into a recession, just going to show that the advantages of having a private medical insurance policy has become more prominent to people than ever. Freedom Healthnet takes a look at the top five reasons for taking out PMI, according to Bupa.


1. Clean Hospitals
The NHS is notoriously under pressure, mainly because it has a limited budget and has suffered from cleanliness in the past few years. Despite the number of cases of MRSA and other superbugs like C.Difficile falling recently, Bupa found that 8 percent more people stated this as their main reason for taking out private health insurance than the year before.

2. Faster access to specialists
Four percent more people stated this as their reason for choosing private medical insurance.

3. No waiting lists
This is a very attractive benefit for many people who enquire into private health cover. NHS waiting lists have improved significantly recently, with the government achieving it’s 18 week target. But this is still too long for some people and the thought of being able to be treated in as quick a time as possible, as well as in a medical centre that is most convenient to them is a big factor.

4. Faster recovery
Private hospitals have some of the best medical facilities in the country, and this along with the fact that people can be treated before their conditions get any worse by waiting for longer on the NHS are just some of the reasons why two percent more people took out private medical insurance than last year.

5. Ability to see the same consultant
A lot of people build up trust between the doctor that is to be helping them overcome their illness and return to a good state of health. But on the NHS, this is something that has become increasingly difficult, especially if someone wants to be treated in the shortest time available.

A quote for private medical insurance is based on many factors including age, occupation and area of residence. Some people will undoubtedly end up with a higher bill for private medical cover than others. In a time when income is being spread further than it has been in the past decade, most people will be looking for ways in which they can save – and their private medical insurance policy is one of them. By making a few simple lifestyle changes however, a person could put themselves in a significantly lower risk category than someone else. Here are just three ways in which this can be done:

The healthier you are, the less you pay. You may have been a smoker all your life, but it is never too late to change. Simply by taking a second look at your diet and participating in exercise – even something as easy as walking further than you usually would – can make a big difference to your general well-being. The private medical insurance provider will undoubtedly have to pay out for more health care treatments for someone who has a lower standard of health so this is reflected in the insurance quote.

A less hazardous occupation can reduce the cost of your private health insurance policy. There are dangers in every walk of life, but some workplaces expose their employees to more risky situations than others. Some areas of the country also mean people more likely to be susceptible to a certain condition than others – for example heart disease is known to be more prevalent in areas of the North and Scotland. You do not necessarily have to change your job or move house – but this is something to consider when you are enquiring into private health insurance.

A good credit rating can also save you money on your medical insurance premiums. This factor is becoming increasingly relevant across more areas than before, as your ability to pay also affects health insurance companies, as well as other institutions like mortgage providers. A customer with an excellent credit history will obviously be more attractive and will benefit from a reduction in price.

With the announcement this month from the Department of Health, allowing us to top-up NHS treatment, private health insurance companies across the UK are looking for ways to address this new market. The move means that patients may now be able to put money towards the cost of their healthcare if the NHS refuses to pay for all of it, for example where a particularly expensive drug might be concerned, previously subject to approval by NICE. Before, if a patient wanted to contribute, they would have had to fork out for the cost of the entire treatment; something that would have been too expensive for most people. But, while the majority of insurers are working to develop a private medical insurance policy to help people out in this situation, Freedom has a ready made NHS top-up solution that you can access straight away.

As a health insurance provider that offers cash upon approval of inpatient claim, Freedom’s policies work slightly differently to traditional health insurance. Instead of paying directly to the private hospital or facility where you received your surgery, Freedom gives you a cash lump sum which then enables you to use the money as you see fit. So, if you wanted to be treated in a private clinic then you could, but you could also choose to be treated by the NHS and use the money to top up the treatment that you would have received on the NHS. Freedom’s Gold Essential health insurance policy would be ideal, if you just wanted to be covered for this eventuality. Premiums start at just £10.88 per month and give you access to up to £30,000 of in-patient cover.

More information about health insurance & NHS Tops Ups.

Many GPs are not meeting their waiting time targets, according to an NHS watchdog. In its recent report, the Healthcare Commission found that over two thirds of all practices could not offer an appointment within 48 hours – the guideline that was set as part of new contracts for doctors in 2004. In the previous year, eight out of ten surgeries met the target. Primary care trusts across the country have now been instructed to launch a review in their areas to avoid losing their patients to private medical insurance.

Despite claims from both the government and doctors that the information was misleading as it was based on patient surveys as well as anonymous calls to surgeries, Gary Needle from the Healthcare Commission told the BBC, “If it was only a 10% difference then you might say patients were not understanding the exact question put to them, but you can't explain away this scale of difference in that way. Patients are not getting sufficient access."

Health insurance policies allow patients to use world class private facilities, where waiting times are not an issue. It is a priority for many people to be able to have access to a doctor when they need it, not when an appointment is available. The problem may be irrelevant by the time they get to see a GP, and many people will be put off going altogether, possibly making the illness worse in the long run. With early detection of many conditions vital to a person's recovery, it is likely that these statistics will encourage people to get a quote for private medical insurance where they will be seen and treated efficiently, and in a place and time convenient to them.

In the UK, the government is working hard to try to reduce the number of Road Traffic Accidents that occur each year. The latest data from the Office for National Statistics show that there were around 247,780 accidents in 2007, 4 per cent fewer than in 2006. ‘Looked but failed to see’ (LBFTS) accidents contribute to around 35 per cent of all reported accidents, and four out of the five most frequently reported factors involve driver or rider error or reaction. Younger and older drivers are most likely to be involved in accidents than drivers aged 25-69. Younger male drivers are more likely to have factors related to speed and behaviour, whereas older drivers are more likely to have factors related to vision and judgement. There is much psychological and perceptual research taking place that aims to reduce these sorts of incidents, but the fact remains that when they do take place, having private health insurance cover can really help to smooth the way to recovery.

Accident and emergency treatment via the NHS will almost certainly return you to a good level of health, but with access to private health care, waiting lists can be avoided for treatment, and alternative therapies such as acupuncture are available if required. Private medical insurance could also cover costs incurred by staying in an NHS hospital, for example, if parents are forced into an overnight stay if their child becomes ill. This is a common feature of cash plan health insurance, whereby customers have the option as to whether they would like to receive their treatment in an NHS hospital, private clinic or a centre overseas. Policy holders may also have access to telephone helplines to give advice to road traffic accident victims after their traumatic experience.

Over 100,000 operations have been cancelled in the past year by the National Health Service, nearly double the number initially reported by the government. The Department of Health stated that 57,000 patients had to have their procedures rescheduled but this only includes those that were informed with less than 24 hours' notice. Many people even suffered from more than one cancellation. It is no wonder then that the number of people taking out a cash plan private medical insurance policy rose by at least three per cent in last year, meaning the total number of people benefitting from health cover reached almost three million in the UK.

Operation cancellations can be deeply troubling for patients, particularly those who are nervously anticipating their stay in hospital. Mark Martin from Health On-Line said, "Often these procedures are of a major or complex nature and one cancellation, let alone multiple cancellations, only adds to the anxieties and stress experienced by the patient and their family. Private medical insurance can go some way towards alleviating these stresses by allowing the patient to choose when and where their procedure is undertaken." Cash plan private medical insurance policies like those from Freedom Healthnet do just this.

Among the many choices available to you are: a private clinic that is in a suitable location, whether it is close to home, or further away, if you don’t mind a longer journey. If you would like to travel out of the country, you can also opt to receive your treatment abroad, or if you want to visit your local NHS hospital, your private medical insurance policy can supplement any costs incurred. Either way, you can avoid long waiting lists and have your operation without the fear that it will be cancelled.

The amount of British pets covered by a private health insurance policy is nearly double that of their owners. According to a new study by Tesco Finance, 23 per cent of domestic animals in the UK have health cover in comparison to only 12.2 per cent of their human counterparts. It is well known that Britain is a nation of animal lovers, and there are many benefits of having an insurance policy that protects our furry friends. Ewan Mc Neil, former president of the society of practicing veterinary surgeons told yourmoneyhaven.com, “I'm not surprised that pet insurance is becoming so popular - people will do everything they can to ensure the best for their pets.” But despite this, should we be looking after number one?

With the credit crunch, money is much tighter and a decision may have to be made as to whether it’s yourself or the dog that gets the private health cover. It is true that vet bills can be an unnecessary and costly expense for pet owners, however having access to top quality health care for yourself could end up being ruled out if your animal wins the battle for the health insurance policy. Patients may be subject to long NHS waiting lists and a limited choice of facilities and appointment times because they cannot afford the fees for private treatment, but this could easily be avoided with the small cost of a cash plan private health insurance policy like those offered by Freedom Healthnet. If a dilemma arises, pet owners may have to consider the cost of a vet bill in comparison to private health care for themselves.

If you are looking to take out a health insurance policy for your family, an insurance plan which pays out cash upon approval of inpatient claim could be just what you are looking for. They are one of the more affordable ways to provide extra security, and just like paying for any other type of medical cover, a cash plan policy allows you to pay simple monthly payments to your provider. The difference between the two occurs when a member of your family needs medical treatment. Instead of your insurance company paying the private company to carry out the care required, you are given money directly to supplement the cost of any medical help.

Cash plans overall are cheaper, with standard premiums that are not affected by your general health. This is because these policies do not require an assessment of your previous health, or a detailed physical examination unlike other private medical insurance policies.

Another difference between a cash plan policy and a regular health insurance policy is that the former gives much more freedom in choosing whether you wish to receive your medical care with a private health provider like BUPA, or simply help towards the cost of NHS treatment, such as buying prescription glasses. They prefer people to use their cover to pay for routine medical care and screenings which may help prevent illness occurring in the first place and to keep you in good general health. A private health insurance policy only gives you the option to receive your treatment in a private hospital in order to avoid NHS waiting lists, which could restrict your options, especially if you would prefer to stay in your normal medical routine.

Could advances in gene technology reduce health insurance costs?

With a huge step in medical research being made in the past two years, DNA testing is now offered to the public by many companies across the country. The new examinations are readily available for around £495 and scan the whole human genome thanks to new computer processors which can now be found at the fingertips of leading researchers. The test, which can identify the likelihood of developing diseases such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes, obesity and osteoporosis, is said to have increasing importance to medical insurance providers, and may reduce health insurance quotes if a person is less likely to develop a disease.

However some people are concerned that the opposite situation could also occur. A person who is found to have a higher chance of developing such a disease may be subject to a higher premium than they would do normally. Currently, the amount somebody pays for a private health insurance policy depends on factors such as age, sex and health but this could change with the possible integration of genetic information. Despite a possible increase in cost, people who find that they have a high probability of becoming ill may decide that they want to take out a health insurance policy to ensure they get the treatment they need if that day comes. Experts also have concerns about those who are told that they have a low risk of developing a disease as they may become complacent about their health.

Hereditary factors are not the only causes of getting illnesses such as cancer and heart disease meaning that people like Steve Jones, the genetics professor at London’s University College, are sceptical about the uses of such information for health insurance companies. He told the BBC, "The actual power of the individual gene to say anything about your own risk at the moment is actually very small."

The cost of private medical insurance has decreased in recent years, meaning that it is now more accessible and affordable to the British public. With increasing numbers of people wishing to take out health insurance policies, and with a wide range of cover available, it can become confusing. Private medical insurance itself goes by many different names, but the terms hospital plan, health plan, health insurance and cash plan all essentially have the same purpose in assisting you with the cost of private healthcare.

Over 3.4 million people in the UK have decided to take out a health insurance policy and this has been for many reasons. Long NHS waiting lists and a lack of choice over when and where someone can receive their treatment are two major causes for concern. A private medical insurance policy gives the freedom and peace of mind in knowing that care is available in the space of a few days if it becomes necessary.

An even higher level of freedom is given if someone decides to take out a cash plan policy, where the insurance provider will pay the customer money towards the cost of treatment rather than paying it directly like regular health insurance. This gives the patient the increased choice of whether to use the money to supplement care from the NHS or whether to use it to pay for private treatment. Cash plans are often a more affordable way of ensuring that the best facilities are available to you in case you need them, but fully comprehensive policies are available which may also cover the cost of alternative treatments such as acupuncture and reflexology, as well as physiotherapy and chiropractic care.

Private Health Insurance, like everything else, is now accessible online 24/7. With increasing numbers of individuals requiring this valuable medical cover, it is vital that health insurance providers give excellent access to clients. Customers want to learn about the different types of health insurance policies available to them: this is vital as they need to decide which policy is right for them and their loved ones. Is a family policy better? An individual one? One for child only? or for a student? Is it a group insurance, like corporate / company health insurance? What type of health insurance is best for me? is a question often asked: budget health insurance, core health insurance? comprehensive health insurance? With outpatient care? With Alternative therapies? Also, when considering private medical insurance, it is important to identify which hospitals your treatment could be in, should you fall ill. Some companies are restricted to one group of hospitals, some via an area. In the case of Freedom Healthnet, upon approval of inpatient claim, funds are transferred directly to the account of the client to allow the client to decide where they would like to be treated: in a UK private hospital, an NHS hospital or a private hospital abroad.
All this information should be clearly displayed on medical insurance company's web sites so that the user can weigh up the benefits of each option and make an informed decision.

It is essential to understand exactly what you are covered for and what medical exclusions are on your policy and some people choose to do this via the company's web site whilst others prefer to talk to an insurance specialist with the company. Health insurance companies are finding, increasingly, that individuals are not only getting an online quote but also they are deciding to buy health insurance online, direct from the provider.
For those looking to compare health insurance / medical insurance prices, an online quick quote facility is excellent to get an overview of the cost of health insurance. With minimal information to input, a 30 second online quote for medical insurance is possible.

Health & Medical Insurance are increasingly being taken up within the UK but, as a quality Health & Medical Insurer, Freedom customer service representatives find that there are some questions that arise repeatedly from our potential clients.

A health insurance policy is a contract that is created between the medical insurer and the client or a group (like a company). Within this contract is the promise by the health insurer to provide specified health insurance at an agreed price - the premium that the client pays. With Freedom policies, the health insurance premium can be paid either in full or in installments, but not all insurance providers operate in this way.

As with any contract, the insurer has to provide information about exclusions and the terms and conditions of insurance. The client (or insuree) provides information about their prior health either at the time of taking out the policy or, as in the case of Freedom Insurance, in the event of a claim. The terms and conditions of the medical insurance policy will probably exclude chronic (long term) existing conditions and specify that conditions reoccurring within a specified time before the policy will not be covered. For instance, if you suffer from recurring condition such as asthma, diabetes or eczema these would not be covered under a health policy. However, an acute condition such as a hernia which had been corrected and the person had been symptom free for a period of time (i.e. 2 years / 5 years, dependent upon the policy) then a different hernia formed, this could be covered. This is why it is so important for people to read the policy carefully and to ask questions of the insurer to ensure that they understand fully what they are and are not covered for.

Upon approval of claim, Health / Medical insurance provides either a direct payment to the claimant or to the hospital. With private health insurance from Freedom, payment is made directly to the client upon approval of inpatient claim, to spend on treatment in the UK or abroad.

The costs and the range of protection provided by health insurance varies from company to company and varies based upon the type of policy taken out, which is why it is important to read what is covered carefully and speak to an advisor from the company for further advice.

Want to know how much health insurance costs? Get an instant online quotation for private health insurance from Freedom and learn how little you have to pay for good quality cover.

ery year around 36,000 Britons develop bowel cancer – that's one every fifteen minutes - and nearly half that number die from the disease.
Although 90% of sufferers are over 55, with an average age of 70, a growing number of younger people are developing bowel cancer.
Our modern lifestyles may be increasing our risk of contracting the disease. Research has shown that a diet low in fatty food and caffeine but high in fibre and fresh fruit can reduce our chances of getting bowel cancer.
Fibre helps speed the passage of waste through the digestive system and fresh fruit and vegetables help the colon empty itself frequently. Increasing the amount of water you drink also helps to keep the motions soft and allows waste to pass more easily.
If you smoke, are overweight or take little exercise you are also more likely to develop the cancer. People with a family history of the disease also have an increased risk of becoming sufferers themselves.
Charities such as Bowel Cancer UK recommend we get to know our bowel pattern so we know what to look for if things do change. Symptoms of bowel cancer include; blood in or on the stools, unexplained weight loss, pain in the abdomen or changes in bowel habits such as constipation or diarrhoea that lasts longer than six weeks. However, in many cases these symptoms do not mean you have bowel cancer.
If you do notice anything unusual, it is important to see your doctor. If someone thinks they might have bowel cancer, their GP will perform an examination of the back passage and feel the abdomen. They may also ask for a stool sample so that it can be tested for blood. The patient might then be referred to a hospital specialist for a rectal examination.
If the disease is in its early stages the cancer can be completely removed by surgery and patients may not need any further treatment, although some need chemotherapy to reduce the risks of the cancer coming back.
However, if the cancer is in its advanced stage it may spread to the abdomen or liver and lungs. Advanced stage bowel cancer cannot usually be cured, but treatment, such as radiotherapy, may be able to control it.
Research shows that 84% of Britons would rather ignore their symptoms than talk to their doctor (UEGF 2003) but the longer it goes untreated, the less likely it is that the cancer can be cured.
As with other cancers, private medical insurance would cover this. If you or your family do fall ill with this disease and there is no prior medical history then you would be fully covered and able to have your treatement in a private medical facility to suit you. Many health insurance clients, if they do fall ill with cancer, research the best private hospital for their particular cancer and choose to be treated there. This is one key benefit for medical insurance policies by companies such as Freedom: you have the opportunity of selecting treatment in ANY hospital - in the UK or abroad. Get an instant online medical insurance quote for health insurance for your family. One client, for instance, chose treatment in America as she wanted to be treated by the best specialist in the world. She took the payout amount for her cancer claim and booked in for treatment with a top cancer specialist in the US. Because she had chosen an expensive venue for treatment, she made up the difference between the policy payout and the hospital quotation for treatment. Our client was delighted that she had that choice.
As with any service or product costs, the UK and abroad can vary immensely and treatment abroad can be substantially less than in the UK.

Women with breast cancer have faced staggering travel insurance premiums for years, often leaving them unable to take a well-earned break or forcing them to travel without insurance.

Every year, over 44,600 women are diagnosed with the condition in the UK and on average, one in nine women will develop the disease at some point in their lives, say breastcancercare.

But insurance companies often charge massive premiums for sufferers wishing to travel abroad and, according to Macmillan Cancer Support, many women also feel the insurers ask insensitive questions when calculating their premium.

However, a new travel policy from Equity Insurance, called insurepink could mean an end to crippling travel costs for sufferers. It has been developed by Fiona MacRae, 45, a woman with a first-hand experience of living with the cancer and promises to be more understanding than the main insurers.

Mainstream premiums are often high as insurers classify cancer patients as high risk. They consider pre-exisiting medical conditions as evidence that a claim for medical care will be more likely when travelling.

But insurepink promises to reflect the true risks of holiday travel, not the perceived risk of travelling with a severe condition.

Insurepink are also targeting people who do not have the condition but want to support the cause and will be donating £1 to the Pink Ribbon Foundation for every travel policy sold and £10 for every car or home insurance policy sold before October 1st 2008.

Ms MacRae, told the Times she designed the new policy after being quoted a premium of more than than £300 to cover a week’s holiday in France with her family, months after receiving treatment. She said: “Even if you have been out of treatment for five years, you can still get whacked on premiums. They say that cancer is high risk for travel insurance but it is not really, not like life cover. You are just going on holiday.”

“At the moment, insurers have a broad-brush approach. But cancer is an umbrella term for 200 diseases that all react differently. Insurers need to assess risk more specifically, and price accordingly.”

Ms MacRae also believes that the questions mainstream insurers ask are not appropriate for accurately determining a person’s risk. For example, most insurers will ask how many times a person has visited the doctor in the past year to determine how likely they are to need medical attention whilst travelling.

“Of course they have been to the doctor,” she told the Times. “Going to the doctor a lot could mean they are less likely to need care on holiday, because they are actively being looked after.” Insurepink has dropped questions that it believes are unhelpful in determining risk and has introduced new ones based on a patients medication.

The Equity Insurance Group is also gathering more statistical data to develop policies for sufferers of other cancers, such as men with prostate cancer. Neil Utley, the group’s chief executive, told the Times: “We are investigating areas of the market poorly served by fair pricing.”

According to Jonathan French, from the Association of British Insurers, the insurance industry as a whole is trying to improve cover for patients with preexisiting medical conditions. In an interview with the Times he said: “When applying for travel insurance, people are obliged to disclose preexisting conditions, or the policy is invalid. We are trying to make things better... but it is important to note that people can get cover. There are plenty of specialist providers. The difficulty has been people not knowing their options.”

He added that cancer charities, such as Macmillan Cancer Support, often have information about which insurers specialise in cover for cancer patients.

For more information on breast cancer, visit: www.insurepink.co.uk.

Medical insurance can cover breast cancer and other cancers, subject to the usual medical policy exclusions - such as if the condition was pre-existing or subject to a qualifying period. With so much controvosy about the postcode lottery when it comes to breast and other cancer treatments, many individuals are turning to private medical insurance to ensure that they are covered in the unfortunate circumstance of succumbing the disease.

Hot on the heels of recent stories of dirty hospitals raising the death toll, newspapers are reporting how vercrowded, filthy wards, shortages of nurses and financial difficulties led to 1,176 people contracting Clostridium difficile, according to the Healthcare Commission.
Over two and a half years, the infection outbreak at three Kent hospitals contributed to the deaths of 331 patients. The Healthcare Commission said that the infection – a severe form of infectious diarrhoea - probably or definitely caused the deaths of 90 patients and it was a contributing factor in the deaths of a further 241.
The number of deaths turned out to be far higher than originally declared to the media as the commission found cases where patients were probably killed by the superbug, but it was not reported on their death certificates.
A report by the commission said that some patients should have fully recovered from their initial illness but they caught the C Diff bug and died.
The report said there had been “significant failings” in infection control at the hospitals, causing the worst outbreak of a lethal superbug ever recorded in the NHS.
Dirty bathrooms and overflowing commodes were found at the Kent and Sussex, Pembury and Maidstone hospitals. Nurses were also too busy to clean their hands and equipment properly and infected patients were frequently moved in an attempt to meet waiting time targets.
The commission also said that managers at the Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust were too preoccupied with hitting Government targets and had been cutting nursing staff and closing beds to help balance the books.
In May 2004, the trust’s chief executive, Rose Gibb – who has recently resigned - told the BBC she had known about the problems with cleanliness for six months, according to The Telegraph.
The report has now been sent to the Health and Safety Executive and Kent Police, who will decide if there are grounds for criminal charges.
Health Secretary Alan Johnson has also told the Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust to withhold payments to Ms Gibb, pending legal advice.

Again, another story hits the national papers on the subject of the increasing risk of superbugs in hospitals. prompting individuals and families to take up health insurance and ensure that they are able to use a private hospital in the unfortunate situation of having to have medical treatment.

What happens when you have had a serious medical condition? What happens if you have suffered from a condition for years? Or several years ago? Can you get private health insurance? These are questions that are frequently asked of health insurance companies. The simple answer is 'yes', but with conditions.

If you have a history of a serious illness then there is the possibility of a recurrence of this condition. It is probably that private medical insurance companies will not insure you against this particular condition but it is likely that they will still provide health insurance for you. How can they do this?

There are two main types of underwriting for a Freedom Health Insurance Policy:

Moratorium: this is cover for the cost of treatment of acute conditions (disease, illness or injuries that are likely to respons quickly to treatment) which arise after the start of the policy. A Moratorium policy excludes any conditions for which medication has been received, advise or treatment given or any symptons experienced whether the condition has been diagnosed or not in the five years before the start of the cover. These are known a 'pre-existing conditions'. Related conditions will also not be covered. However, if the policy holder has not had any symptoms, treatment, medication or advice for a pre-existing condition or any related condition for a continuous period of two years after the start date of your policy for a particular condition, the condition will become eligible for cover under the start of your Freedom Healthnet Insurance Policy.

Full Medical Underwriting: this is the assessment of the health risk based upon the detailed medical history questionnaire from which the terms and conditions of our acceptance of the application are decided and applied to the Policy at the commencement date. It clearly states what would not be covered in the event of a claim.

Should you tell your medical insurance company about any prior treatment or conditions? If you would like to be fully informed about what medical treatment you would be entitled to and what you would not be covered for, then yes. If you take out a Moratorium policy, you do not need to disclose prior conditions but in the event of a claim you should be aware that only 'new conditions' would be covered and not those connected with a prior condition (see above).

Should you still get cover for private medical insurance if you have had a chronic illness or pre-existing condition? We believe, yes. For conditions such as asthma and diabetes, the NHS is designed to provide good care and treatment. Your private health insurance would still cover you for conditions not related to your pre-existing condition and so you could take advantage of the speed, ease and efficiency of private health treatment in the event of illness or injury.

Want to understand the insurance words and phrases? Get full definitions and understand insurance language from our glossary of medical insurance terms.

Private health insurance company, Freedom Healthnet Ltd, is delighted to announce its move to larger offices within the prestigious commercial development of Bourne Gate in Poole. Nestled with the DVLA, Virgin Media and other quality businesses, the growth into new offices demonstrate how successful the Freedom health insurance policies are with both corporates and individuals.

The Freedom Medical Insurance Policies were introduced 4 years ago as the company identified a significant gap in the market. There were either hospital plans - which paid out a fixed amount per day when you had to spend time in a hospital - or there was medical insurance which tied you to a hospital, such as BUPA or BMI. Freedom Medical Cover offered something completely different. Upon approval of an inpatient claim, the health policies would pay out cash, directly into the bank accounts of the claimant, before the treatment took place. This would then enable the patient to do one of 3 things:

1. pay for their treatment in the private hospital of their choice


2. wait for treatment on the NHS and keep the money


3. find a quality hospital abroad and get treatment there.

All of these options gave the possibility of excess cash for the customer to keep - perhaps to pay towards a holiday to help recovery or to support time off work, for instance.

Many people do not realise that operation costs can vary substantially from one private hospital to the next. The Freedom health policy allows the client to shop around and find the best deal OR they can use the money towards getting the best consultant in the country (or in Europe, or in the US) and paying the difference themselves. The whole purpose of medical insurance from Freedom was to give the policyholder choice.

Freedom's employee medical insurance has been increasingly taken up by companies wanting to reduce the amount of time their workers have off sick and also to offer them an extra incentive to stay at the company.

The expansion of the health insurance provider into its new offices is indicative of the unique offering and quality service that Freedom Healthnet provides to its clients.

The Health foundation, Think-Tank, has recently released their study on the UK healthcare system. Within its findings was worrying news about how waiting lists for non-emergency operations and treatments were getting longer and how trying to visit a GP out of hours is increasingly difficult. The study looked at the UK health system and compared it with those of our neighbours in Europe and other first world nations.

The foundation learned that 55% of patients within the UK had problems accessing their GP at night and at the weekends with Great Britain coming in well behind countries like The Netherlands and Germany. Additionally, waiting times were worse in the UK compared to its European neighbours with 15% patients waiting over 6 months for treatment.

It is studies like this which worry consumers and make individuals consider buying private health insurance to ensure peace of mind.

The takeup of Individual Medical Insurance is on the increase in the UK as publicity over fatal infections in NHS hospitals reaches new heights. The Telegraph quotes how 90 patients cared for by Maidstone & Tunbridge Wells Hospitals NHS Trust died as a result of infection from a nasty superbug, Clostridium difficile. With recent photographs of dirty hospitals in the press, the rise of MRSA and other such bugs and the often-lengthy waiting lists, people are turning to private health insurance to rescue them from the failing NHS.

According to The Telegraph, about 7.4 million people in the UK already have health insurance and this number is now on the increase. When faced with a mixed sex ward or a private room by yourself when you are ill, many opt for the latter. Moreover, the prospect of being treated instantly instead of waiting months to see a consultant and then more months for treatment is instantly attractive. Private health insurance offers choice and people are really beginning to understand the benefits associated with that choice.

With reports that the funding for the NHS is going to slow down after 2008, the increased demands of an expanding population, coupled with increasingly expensive drugs and procedures will not be able to be met. BUPA has produced a report illustrating that there will be an £11 billion gap in the funding of the NHS by 2015.

All of these factors are driving people to the conclusion that private health insurance is the way to go. Many are lucky enough to have employee health insurance via their work for themselves and their families. Indeed, the ABI state that about half of the number of people covered in the UK have insurance policies via their employer.

Following on from the Employee Health Benefits Exhibition, the ABI discussed the ideas around employee medical insurance at their Health Conference earlier this month.

Health and Safety has ensured that the number of workplace injuries continues to fall, year on year, which is excellent news for both employees and employers. However, one issue which continues to affect employers is absenteeism due to illness. With 28 million days per year lost due to illness and 7 million days still lost due to injury, this is a serious problem for businessess. Absence from work costs employers a staggering £13 billion per year and an additional £13 billion paid in incapacity benefits by the government / the taxpayer.

The government is endeavouring to address these issues from their end, including advising small and medium sized businesses, but the medical insurance industry has a vital role to play in alleviating the above situation. 10 million workers in the UK are currently being covered through helath insurance and income protection insurance and every year more than £3 billion is paid out to meet healthcare needs and to replace lost income.

Medical and Health Insurance is increasingly offered by companies who wish to reduce the amount of time taken off work by their employees due to sickness or injury. It is seen as a perk or benefit by the employees who appreciate the fact that their employers are investing in their health. Additionally, employee medical insurance can be extended to include family cover - offering peace of mind as their loved ones will receive prompt treatment in the unfortunate event of illness, without having to suffer the delays of the NHS.

Family doctors may soon be able to tell patients how altering their habits may help them to live longer - with the associated implications for private health insurance and the potential for reducing premiums.

Dr Chris Martin, a researcher and GP in Laindon, Essex, has developed a computer program that can outline how long a person may live, depending on simple information such as smoking habits, age and blood pressure.

By next year, Dr Martin hopes to have refined the model to include factors such as stress and ethnicity. People from the sub-continent, for example, are more likely to develop cardio-vascular diseases.

The results of his model are displayed in a simple graph that shows how many more years a person can expect to live after making changes to their lifestyle. The graph can show, for example, greater changes in life expectancy if a patient were to give up smoking, which affects the risk of lung cancer and heart disease. The program can also display the benefits of other lifestyle changes, such as lowering blood pressure and cholesterol.

GPs already use a risk calculator to evaulate how likely individuals are to have a heart attack but this is typically based on percentages, which Dr Martin says a lot of the public do not understand. His program, which he calls the Laingdon Model, produces a picture of the risks and the effects that different changes in lifestyle would have on lowering them.

Results are not displayed in percentages, but on a set of curves on a computer screen. These graphs show how likely a person is to still be living at any future age, up to 85 and how the chances can be improved by lowering cholesterol, quitting smoking or making other changes.

The graph shows that without making any changes, the chances of living to be 80 years old are around 25 per cent. But giving up smoking could increase that chance to fifty per cent.

A different graph shows that controlling blood pressure would also benefit life expectancy, but this does not make as great a difference as smoking. For example, a person who does not control their blood pressure has an estimated 80 per cent chance of living to be 60, but this can be raised to just over 90 per cent.

Dr Martin told The Telegraph: “I came up with the idea primarily to scare people out of smoking. And, anecdotally, it seems to work in at least half of the cases.”

He suggests three furthur changes that will help increase lifespan. The most beneficial is eating lots of fruit and veg, which will help to reduce the risk of heart failure and cancer. Doing plenty of exercise will also help to reduce the chances of developig heart disease. And reducing your stress levels can also help. But he told The Telegraph that there are no guarantees: “I deal in probabilities. Diseases in the body are biological car crashes. Some smokers will live to 85: most won’t.”

He tested the system by using information from a previous study, on a sample of people in Whickham, near Newcastle upon Tyne. Data was gathered between 1972 and 1974 about a group of individuals, who were chosen to representative of the general population. The group were then followed up for 20 years by the original authors of the study.

Dr Martin fed this information into his model, which estimated how many of them would have still been living after 20 years. His model predicted 75 per cent, whereas the follow up study showed that 75.4 per cent of the group survived.

He expects the models main use will be for GPs and for health advice. “If you show patients a graph it really brings it home to them,” he told The Times.

The model is already in use in some doctors surgeries in South Essex, after being taken up by Health Enterprise East, the NHS Innovations Hub for the East of England.

Dr Martin’s model was the subject of his dissertation when he was studying a course a Health Informatics at University College London. The MSc course is designed to help medical workers use their IT skills to improve patient care.

Child health is constantly in the news and the importance of looking after the health and diet of your little ones. On staffnurse.com a news article reported on a goverment study which has indicated that although children are eating more healthy diets and greater amounts of fruit and vegetables but, at the same time, they are still getting fatter. With a staggering 16% of children in the UK now obese it is a striking statistic that reminds us of the silent damage parents can do to their child's health without realising it.

Health insurance helps you to take care of your children in the event of accident or illness.

Get a quick quotation for child-only health insurance.