Save Our NHS: 20% Of Brits More Inclined to Buy Health Insurance If It Would Reduce Strain on the NHS

10.3 million ultrasounds. 6 million CT scans. 3.8 million MRIs. 214,723 diagnostic echocardiograms. 165,915 appointments to get chemotherapy. 90,242 knee replacements and 76,337 hip replacements. 59,664 inguinal hernia repairs.

These are just a tiny proportion of the diagnostic tests, treatments and operations the NHS carried out in the year to March 2020 in England.

The NHS provides cradle to grave healthcare, all free at the point of use. It’s no wonder we love it and will do anything we can to protect it.

According to Drewberry’s 2021 Pandemic Health & Protection Survey of 1,000 working adults, it appears many would consider Private Health Insurance to do just that.

The NHS Under Pressure: Waiting Time Woes…

Unfortunately, since the period the above figures cover (the year ending 31st March 2020), COVID-19 has dealt the health service a devastating blow.

Waiting times have increased for routine procedures. Meanwhile, the NHS has had to cancel operations due to lack of staff as all hands turned to fighting the pandemic.

Furthermore, with intensive care beds filled with ill coronavirus patients, it just hasn’t been possible to do procedures such as hip and knee replacements, as well as many other operations.

With pressure on the NHS currently immense, our survey found that 1 in 5 Brits are more inclined to consider Private Health Insurance if it would help reduce this pressure.

However, the top reason people are more likely to consider Health Insurance today is current NHS waiting lists. 38.2% of people said that was the case, while 22.1% said they were after more flexible appointments.

UK Businesses Are Also Getting On The Health Insurance Bandwagon

Growing interest in Private Health Insurance among consumers is backed up by another recent poll: The Drewberry Employee Benefits & Workplace Satisfaction Survey 2021.

This found that 35.3% of workers were keen for their employer to offer Health Insurance. That made it one of the most sought after benefits.

Clearly, there’s growing appetite for Private Health Insurance. This could continue for the rest of 2021 even as vaccinations roll out and the pandemic starts to fade because the current backlog of NHS procedures due to COVID-19 will take a while to clear.

We are seeing a lot more people considering Private Health Insurance in 2021.

We are here to provide advice and help you compare the policies of all the best UK Health Insurance providers.

Joe Toft
Health & Wellbeing Expert at Drewberry

For fee-free Health Insurance advice, we are here to help. Just drop us a call on 02074425880.

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