According to the health policy editor at the Guardian, private medical insurance is becoming increasingly popular as the NHS faces challenges. The long delays in NHS care are causing concern, with reports indicating wait times for procedures like hip or knee replacements could span months. This has led to a rise in the use of private healthcare in the UK.
Recent figures from Healthcode show record numbers of procedures being performed on individuals with private medical insurance (PMI) in private clinics and hospitals, amounting to over £4bn in activity during 2023.
Procedures covered by private health insurance range from routine blood tests to more complex surgeries like knee replacements and nerve blocks. Private hospitals in England are also catering to a growing number of NHS patients, bridging the gap between public and private healthcare.
Private hospitals in England conducted a high number of procedures on NHS patients last year, with 1.67 million compared to 1.3 million in 2019, all funded by the NHS.
Employers are increasingly offering private medical insurance as a benefit to attract and retain talent. Even under a Labour government committed to bolstering the NHS, the interdependence with the private sector seems inevitable.
A recent Daily Mail article sheds light on the statistics surrounding this shift towards private healthcare.
