VHI change in Benefits

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dewdrop

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I had been under the impression without ever checking it that a person could get 2 weeks free convalescent care with vhi after say an operation provided it was medically recommended. Recently when i got my renewal papers from vhi i accidently spotted that this benefit is for 14 nights with a benefit of up to 51 euro per night. This is probably about a third of the cost. Are there any more material changes to the cover provided that one should know about.
 
dewdrop said:
I had been under the impression without ever checking it that a person could get 2 weeks free convalescent care with vhi after say an operation provided it was medically recommended. Recently when i got my renewal papers from vhi i accidently spotted that this benefit is for 14 nights with a benefit of up to 51 euro per night. This is probably about a third of the cost. Are there any more material changes to the cover provided that one should know about.
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I don't think it's ever been "free", by which I presume you mean fully covered. If it has been full cover, that's many years ago. I don't recall encountering it when I was working in health insurance. Plan B has been €51 for a good number of years at this stage. Based on the figure, I'd say it's been like that since at least the introduction of the euro, and probably a few years before that.

Changes to the cover are included with the renewal information all health insurers send each year. Or at least, it should be included with it. Some changes are notified via newspaper ads, e.g. change in hospital lists, etc.

As for other changes, VHI made some changes to the out-patient cover a year or so ago. They removed some benefits and removed the family excess. You should ask them for a copy of their product rules to see what cover you currently have. You can aso get one on their website - http://www.vhi.ie/downloads/index.jsp.
 
Johnweber said:
Isnt the outpatient excess still €250 per person ?
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It used to be €500 for a family policy, where the receipts of everyone on the family policy would go towards the one excess. The new way is probably fairer though. Under the old way, if one person had a lot of o/p receipts it had to go towards a higher excess, whereas now everyone is assessed on their own basis.

EDIT: If anyone wants to compare the current and previous out-patient benefits on Plan B (and the like), I found an old VHI out-patient claim form on a Google serach - [broken link removed]. The previous out-patient benefits and excesses are on page 2.
 
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The Health Insurance Authority has updated their website with information [broken link removed](mostly improvements, but a small increase to the out-patient excess on most LifeStage plans):

Vhi benefit changes 01.02.2010

On the 1st February 2010 Vhi changed the out-patient excess on all Lifestages plans, excluding First Plan Starter and First Plan Extra, from €1 to €25. Hi-tech hospital benefits were increased on First Plan Plus Level 1 and 2 and also on Family Plan Plus Level 1 and 2. The maternity grant for hospital accommodation on Family Plan Plus Level 1 and 2 increased to €4,000. These changes apply to all new and renewing customers.

Plan C and C Options were merged for all new and renewing customers from 1st February. The new plan will be called Plan C but will have Plan C Options benefits.

Plans D + E have a new screening benefit from 1st February which will provide full cover for screening in a Vhi screening centre every 2 years for all new and renewing customers.
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I imagine VHI will inform existing customers as they renew, but I posted it here in case it's relevant to anyone.
 
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