Health Insurance VHI renewal options for a family

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Páid

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I got married just over two years ago. This coming year I'm looking to make some changes to our health insurance. It was simple when it was just myself but I am now looking to insure the whole family.

Currently this is what we have;
  • Myself (44) - VHI One Plan Complete (civil service group scheme) renewal date is 01/01/2016 and paid for by myself.
  • Wife (44) - VHI Teacher's Plan - renewal date is 01/02/2016 paid for by the wife.
  • Baby (6 weeks) - VHI TMI ??? - renewal date is 01/02/2016 free with the wife's policy until renewal.
  • Step-daughter (18) - no health insurance currently.
I rang VHI and they won't give me a quote for all four people until it's within the renewal period (after 1st December). They raised all sorts of problems over the difference between my renewal date (January) and my wife & son's (February). They cannot finish their contracts early if I want to take over paying for them from my renewal date. I don't want to go a month without health insurance either.

My wife is considering a career break next year to look after the baby and as she will have no income I am looking at paying for her policy along with the two children. I want us all to have "good" health insurance. I would prefer to stay with VHI but I am prepared to move.

My wife has a benign brain tumour and is three years into the five year waiting period for pre-existing conditions. She's currently attending Beaumont in the public system. At the moment (and hopefully for the future) the symptoms are being managed and it's not life threatening. Should this change for the worse I want her to have the best care possible.

What are my options?
 
Hi Paid,

The VHI probably have another list of price changes coming in for December and January so its still a little early to make final decisions.
Anyway, there are a couple of options to keep in mind until then, and in the meantime keep a check on price increases and any new plans
that are released.

Regarding the renewal date difference, you could set up a direct debit for your wife and children from Feb 2016 and pay your own through your
salary as before.

WIFE;
Alternative options for your wife with VHI; her current 'Teachers Plan' will increase to 1511 from 1st November 2015.
1. Plan PMI 42 15; price 1560pa; same hospital cover as before, much better day to day outpatient cover, gp, dental, etc 40 refund per visit.
2. Company Plan Extra Level 3; price 1565pa; same hospital cover as before, much better day to day cover, consultant 100, gp etc 40 per visit.
[broken link removed]

Link for Plan PMI 42 15 which is a new plan from 1 November 2015.
http://www.hia.ie/news/vhi-launch-3-new-plans-pmi-40-15-pmi-41-15-and-pmi-42-15-01112015

The above 2 alternative options are worth considering. Hospital cover is the same as Teachers Plan but these 2 plans have very good day to day cover which is not available on Teachers Plan. There is very little price difference and this day to day cover is available straight away from renewal date as she is under 50 years.

HUSBAND; yourself
Alternative option for yourself with VHI; your current 'One Plan Complete' will increase to 1529pa from 1st November 2015.
1. Plan PMI 41 15; price 1152pa; similar hospital cover as before( private hospital excess 75 per admission, day case excess 50) good day to day cover, consultant 60 refund, gp, dental, physio etc 25 refund per visit.

http://www.hia.ie/news/vhi-launch-3-new-plans-pmi-40-15-pmi-41-15-and-pmi-42-15-01112015

This is a new corporate plan releasing on 1st November 2015 which offers good hospital cover as before, the only difference being the hospital excess 75 per admission to a private or hi-tech hospital, day case excess for private or hi-tech hospitals 50 euro. You are probably over insured
on One Plan Complete hospital-wise, and under insured outpatient-wise. The above plan covers all angles at a more reasonable price.

18 Year Old and new baby
Options to keep in mind for 18 yr old with VHI are;
1. Plan PMI 11 11; price 225pa; good hospital cover, good day to day cover.

Regarding the children, it would be wise to see whats on offer for them nearer to renewal date as there are usually special offers available in some shape or form. The baby would just require hospital cover as he will already be covered for gp visits.

Hope this gives you a few ideas to work with. The Health Insurance Authority usually updates price increases 1 month before in the 'Latest News'
section. So by early December, you should know what your options are overall. By early January, you should know prices for the rest of the family.
NOTE; if a good offer arises for the 18 yr old to suit your renewal date, 1 Jan 2015, you can always add her onto your policy for that date.
Something to keep in mind as her date will be flexible.

You can post again nearer the time if you've any more questions.

Regards, Snowyb
 
Paid,

Just an update on the current position regarding the above post.

Firstly, Company Plan Extra Level 3 is to be discontinued from 1 Jan 2016, so the new corporate plan PMI 42 15 is an identical alternative.
Also, unfortunately this will increase in price from 2nd January 2016, to the new price 1648pa.
[broken link removed]


For yourself, VHI plan PMI 41 15 is not increasing in price on your renewal 1 Jan 2016, so the price 1152pa remains intact.
[broken link removed]

The 18 year old will be classed as a young adult for health insurance purposes.
The plan PMI 41 15 price 399pa ( 18 yr old young adult) would be a good option which also includes good day to day cover, with a 1 euro excess.
Note; this plan will increase to 436pa on 2 Jan 2016, so it would be a good idea to include her on your own policy from 1 Jan 2016.

The good news is that there will be a half price kids offer for January and February which will suit the baby.
Best plan on offer is One Plan Complete; price 151 per child, same hospital cover as before, no inpatient hospital excess, limited day to day cover,
day to day cover is not necessary as he will have free gp visits, under 6.
[broken link removed]

Regards, Snowyb
 
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I went with PMI 42 15 for myself and PMI 41 15 for my step daughter. I know I'm over insured but better safe than sorry.

In January I can add my wife and son (renewal on 1st Feb) for 11 months so that we all have the same renewal date from 1/1/2017 and all will be deducted from my salary.

Thanks SnowyB.
 
I'm thinking of adding my step son as well. Can you recommend a basic plan (preferably VHI) for a 25 year old? He doesn't have health insurance at the moment.
 
Selection of VHI plans to consider for a 25 year old as follows;
1. One Plan Starter; price 490pa; all public hospitals covered, no day to day cover.
2. One Plan 250; price 739pa; all public and private hospitals covered, no day to day, private hospital excess 250 per admission.
3. Plan PMI 40 15; price 833pa; all public, private and Beacon hospital cover, no day to day cover, private hospital excess 75 per admission.
4. Plan PMI 37 13; price 902pa; all public, private and hi-tech hospital cover, no day to day cover, private hospital excess 100 per admission.

[broken link removed]


As an alternative option, Glohealth have a new basic plan called Kick Off Plan, covering all public hospitals(bar 6), price for 25 yr old 513pa.
The extra feature attached to this plan is that you can upgrade to a plan including private hospital cover, whenever its needed, with no upgrade waiting time applied. The upgrade waiting time is usually 2 years. This is a new idea, first of its type, which may appeal to younger people who may not use private cover that often but can avail of it if needed.
This is the comparison of the two Glohealth plans;
1. Kick Off Plan; price 513pa(25 yr old price) public hospital cover.
2. Kick Off Upgrade Plan; price 892pa(25 yr old price) public, private and Beacon Hospital cover.

[broken link removed]

I actually heard info about this on Pat Kenny Newstalk with Dermot Goode( health insurance broker) on 9th December 2015.
There is no details on the Glohealth website about this, so a phone call would be necessary to clarify the details of this.

Podcast of the interview with Dermot Goode, very interesting and informative overall.
[broken link removed]

Regards, Snowyb
 
Snowyb,
I would welcome you advice.
We are a couple (late 50's) in Plan C with VHI. But renewal in Jan is €2,760 each. We want to hold onto private room in private hospital but are prepared to live with an excess. We had a look at PMI 42 15 or Plan B (preferring to stay with VHI). But finding it difficult to clarify whether these alternative plans will cover our needs?
What do you think?
 
Hi Conan,

There is no direct alternative equivalent to Plan C with VHI, so the two plans you're considering are the nearest.
The only extra on Plan C is a private room in a private hospital and Beacon hospital. Blackrock Clinic has no shared wards, all private rooms.
A private room is never guaranteed so it makes sense to adjust cover accordingly.

The main differences between PMI 42 15 and Plan B are as follows;
1. Orthopaedic cover in private or hi-tech hospitals, PMI 42 15 has 80% cover, Plan B has full cover.
This refers to hip or knee replacement surgery. This does not have to be a negative issue, re 80% cover. The 20% shortfall could potentially be
3000+ but the two hi-tech hospitals, Mater Private and Blackrock Clinic are not passing the shortfall onto the patient. So in effect, PMI 42 15 has full orthopaedic cover if you choose either hospital mentioned above. If you wanted to choose another private hospital, you would have to verify if they are charging the patient for the 20% shortfall. If this is a problem for you, well then Plan B would be more suitable.

2. Outpatient Cover and Radiology Cover
PMI 42 15 has excellent outpatient cover and extra radiology cover, with a 1 euro excess. Plan B outpatient cover has a 300 excess which means that the first 300 is not allowed, amounts allowed for gp, consultant etc are poor.
As you are over 50 yrs and under 65, VHI will apply a 1 year waiting time, just for the outpatient cover and extra radiology cover. You would stay on Plan C outpatient cover while waiting. ( Plan C outpatient cover is not great, despite the expensive premium.)

3. TAVI Cover
Plan B has 90% cover for TAVI surgery. This is valve replacement cardiac surgery done by keyhole, if full open heart surgery is not otherwise suitable. This is subject to very strict criteria by VHI, its not done just because a person has the cover. The consultant has to make a strong case for this to be authorised based on previous case history, age, other complications etc. It was only added to Plan B since 2012 and is not covered on PMI 42 15.

4. Private Room in a Private Hospital
Plan 42 15 has the extra option to pay 50 euro per night for a private room in a private hospital. This will cover your preference for a private room
if you are admitted to hospital and if a private room is available. It means you only pay for it if you avail of it and avoid the high premium for plan C. The shortfall per night with Plan B could be 200-300 depending on the hospital involved. It says private room covered in some hospitals, these are not significent main hospitals. Blackrock Clinic has all private wards as standard, no shared wards.

Both plans will cover your health needs as before. Overall, if I was choosing, I would go for Plan PMI 42 15, no hesitation, based on the positives mentioned above, but its ultimately your own personal decision and choice. Whatever you're comfortable and happy to go with.
There's substantial savings to be made whatever alternative you choose, without compromising on cover.

[broken link removed]

Regards, Snowyb
 
Snowyb,
Really appreciate the advice. It seems like health insurance plans are even more complicated than mobile phone plans.
 
I talked to Glohealth about the Kick Off Plan.

There is a further 5% discount if you sign up on the last Sunday of December or the first Sunday (I think) in January.

If you ask to have the waiting time limits waived they may do so if a supervisor allows it (I think they offered this because the age of the insured is 25 years).

I asked them what if the insured bought the Kick Off Plan and then 6 months later discovered they had a heart condition and wanted to upgrade to a plan with higher cover, he said that there would be no waiting times on new conditions.

If this is correct, why would anyone pay for an expensive Glohealth plan when you can pay for the cheapest plan and upgrade at will without consequence? Or am I not understanding how the plan works correctly?
 
You're reading it correctly, I was surprised when I heard the initial details and was looking for the catch.
Hearing it from Dermot Goode on radio, he's a very experienced broker in the business, I was both intrigued and puzzled as to how it would work in practice. In saying that, if you upgrade cover on any plan, a 2 year waiting time applies only for pre-existing illnesses and only for the extra hospital cover on the plan. Any new illnesses that occur are covered straight away, even for the extra cover.

The question would relate to pre-existing conditions being covered or not.
But I would like to hear the finer details explained and teased out by an independent expert who would point out any pitfalls, if any.
If anyone can throw further light on Glohealth Kick Off plan and Kick Off Upgrade plan which started on 1st December 2015, it would be interesting to hear. I'm afraid I'm in the dark on this one, limited to what I heard on the Pat Kenny show recently.

Snowyb
 
He said there was a 5 year waiting period for existing conditions. I just want to get this right before I ring them again - if you have a pre-existing health condition and take out Kick Off Plan you can then upgrade to a plan with higher cover after year 5 without any extra waiting period? Is that the issue?
 
Yes in a nutshell. Dermot Goode was referring to a person who was well over the 5 yr waiting time, which applies to all new customers re pre existing conditions. If you upgrade after that, there is usually a 2 yr wait for any extra cover for pre existing conditions. Its the 2 yr upgrade wait that doesnt apply with this new plan. If thats a correct reading of it.
Snowyb
 
Are there any alternatives to PMI 42 15 (€1711) for my wife? She wants to go with something cheaper. She attends Beaumont and St. Lukes (also in Beaumont). The five years waiting for pre-existing conditions is up since last year.

My step daughter is now 21 and has been on PMI 41 15 for the last few years and has used it on a few occasions. She's still in full time education (if it matters). It's working out at €690 this year. Is there anything cheaper? Her only health issue is a small mole that needs to be removed.

Both policies had a renewal date of 1st Jan but have not been renewed as yet. My wife would prefer to stay with VHI but would consider other providers.
 
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Hi Páid,

Unfortunately, with a renewal date of 1st January, the time for switching plans has lapsed. There is a 14 day cooling off period from 1st January
2019 during which you could switch to a different plan. This 14 day time slot has now expired.
The plans you are on at the moment automatically renewed on 1st January 2019, so you are locked into another 1 year contract until
31st December 2019.

I will recommend alternative plan options for both your wife and 21 year old but they cannot switch until next January 2020, unless VHI make
an exception/concession in your case. It would be worth asking, you never know.

1. VHI Company Plan Extra Level 1; price 1548pa; all public, private and 3 hi-tech hospitals covered; no excess to pay for any admissions or
day case procedures in any hospital. Very good day to day cover on this plan, 75% refund for gp visits, consultant visits etc.

2. VHI PMI 07 10; price 1188pa; all public, private and 3 hi-tech hospitals covered; excess amount to pay if admitted to a private or hi-tech
hospital for a stay or treatment/surgery, capped at 150 x 1 per year for all admissions, day case excess 50 per procedure in private or hi-tech
hospitals. There is no excess to pay in any public hospital. Good day to day cover included, 1 euro excess, refund of 50% for gp visits,
consultant visits, dental, physio etc.

[broken link removed]

Note; Option 2, VHI PMI 07 10 plan is also a good option for 21 year old daughter.

Hopefully they might make an allowance for switching in your family's case, but if not keep the above plans in mind for next year.
The renewal date of 1st January is a busy time of year, during Christmas/New Year. The health insurance renewal can easily be forgotten
about or put on the long finger until its too late. Its a wise move to sort it out early in December so it's done and dusted well before
Christmas.

Regards, Snowyb
 
Thanks SnowyB.

Mine and my son's plan were renewed but the other three plans were not renewed in January. I had rang in December to cancel the plan for my step son as he arranged to get a better VHI plan through his employer where he pays the BIK. I asked for my wife's and step-daughters plans not to be renewed as my wife wanted to save some money there.

I believe they have 13 weeks to sign up to new plans.
 
I got my renewal from VHI and it's increasing this year.

I'm on PMI4215 and my son is on One Plan Complete.
In 2019 the cost was €1,948.20 but the same plans will cost €2,057.21, an increase of €109.01

I have no medical conditions and neither has my 4 year old son. Should I be moving to cheaper plans? I would prefer to stay with VHI as I have used the Swiftcare clinic a number of times and I want to keep that.
 
Hi Páid,

There are 3 alternative options with VHI to consider, details as follows;

1. VHI PMI 01 10; price 1624pa; same hospital cover as PMI 42 15. Day to day cover is slightly lower.

2. VHI PMI 38 14; price 1679pa; same hospital cover as PMI 42 15. Day to day cover is similar, 130 refund per consultant visit.

3. VHI PMI 07 10; price 1240pa; all public, private and 3 hi-tech hospitals covered. Inpatient excess capped at 150 x 1 max per year
for all private and hi-tech admissions. Day case excess 50 per procedure. No excess applies to any public hospital. Good day to
day cover included, 1 euro excess, 50% refund for gp, consultant, dental etc. Max refund 1000 for day to day per year.( 50% of 2000 = 1000).

https://www.hia.ie/comparison-tool/...Mb2NrIjpmYWxzZSwicGxhbl9kZXRhaWxfaWQiOi0xfX1d

For your 4 year old, One Plan Complete is best priced for a plan with no excess in private or hi-tech hospitals.
The next best option is VHI One + Plan @ 225 per child. This plan has the same hospital cover as One Plan Complete but there is
an inpatient excess of 125 for an admission to a hi-tech or private hospital and for a day case procedure.
https://www.hia.ie/comparison-tool/...Mb2NrIjpmYWxzZSwicGxhbl9kZXRhaWxfaWQiOi0xfX1d

NOTE: As your renewal is in January 2020, there may be more price changes lined up for the new year.
These changes will be available on the health insurance authority website/ latest news from early December.
So the above prices are not set in stone just yet. A few suggestions to consider while making up your mind for your renewal.

Regards, Snowyb
 
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