# National Insurance Number & Health Insurance



## Akatrin (Nov 17, 2007)

Sooo... someone in the know, whats the deal? Do I have to get one? I've been reading up on it a bit - I will be using health services/doctors/specialists while in the UK. Is this like the Australian equalivent of Medicare?

Also, How does it work with getting private health insurance? I have the highest level of cover over in Australia, and due to my various medical conditions I think it's something I'm going to have to keep up my entire life. Any suggestions?

Finally, is the "National Insurance number" the same as a "National Health Service Number" that a GP can give you?

Cheers,
~Kat


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## Stravinsky (Aug 12, 2007)

Akatrin said:


> Sooo... someone in the know, whats the deal? Do I have to get one? I've been reading up on it a bit - I will be using health services/doctors/specialists while in the UK. Is this like the Australian equalivent of Medicare?
> 
> Also, How does it work with getting private health insurance? I have the highest level of cover over in Australia, and due to my various medical conditions I think it's something I'm going to have to keep up my entire life. Any suggestions?
> 
> ...



Hi there
Your NI number goes on your health card too and is a general NI / Health identifier, although the card has its own number as well.

Private health care is very expensive in the UK if you dont get it through a company scheme. I used to pay about £110 a month whilst in a company scheme, but when I came out of the scheme and tried to join as an individual it doubled! Plus, I'm afraid, they most often dont cover existing conditions.

If you are paying into the UK system by NI contributions though, you will be entitled I guess to free healthcare under the National Health Service. Queues are long for some treatments, but generally you can get to see a GP within a day in most areas.

Its only when you leave the UK you realise how much you took health cover for granted.


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## Akatrin (Nov 17, 2007)

hmm in Australia they have no choice about pre-existing medical conditions since I contracted them while covered. Even if you change insurance providers the new one has to cover it. Which is why private insurance is something I want...

Maybe I should keep up private insurance in Australia while working and living in the UK? Though sounds... costly


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## Stravinsky (Aug 12, 2007)

Akatrin said:


> hmm in Australia they have no choice about pre-existing medical conditions since I contracted them while covered. Even if you change insurance providers the new one has to cover it. Which is why private insurance is something I want...
> 
> Maybe I should keep up private insurance in Australia while working and living in the UK? Though sounds... costly


Well its normal. When I moved to Spain I had to list any existing conditions. In the past I had two shoulder decompressions and rhinoplasty. In Spain now I am not covered for the shoulder decompressions (ever), although they did allow the other operation.

I tried to insure with BUPA originally, which was who I had been insured with in the past, but they wanted £300 a month! That covered me anywhere in Europe. I ended up with a Spanish insurer for a third of the cost and have cover abroad WHILST ON HOLIDAY.

Check with your present insurer to ensure they will cover you in the UK. Problem is that medical costs in the UK are high. Just seeing a consultant can cost £2-300. In Spain its £40. The insurance premiums reflect this.


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## Akatrin (Nov 17, 2007)

You know, for those numbers I'm actually seriously considering keeping up my Australian single's health insurance... then just catching a flight home if I need an operation or something... I'll ring them anonomously tomorrow and explore this


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## Stravinsky (Aug 12, 2007)

Akatrin said:


> You know, for those numbers I'm actually seriously considering keeping up my Australian single's health insurance... then just catching a flight home if I need an operation or something... I'll ring them anonomously tomorrow and explore this


Probably a good idea, although the flights can't be that cheap


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## Akatrin (Nov 17, 2007)

airfare about 1300 AUS return if you get a special, 1500 otherwise. So probably under 600GBP.. meanwhile my private health care would be under 500 dollars annually max, so that's just over 200 pounds.
So total costs 800 pounds if you need it, 200 if you don't.

Its funny but despite an exchange rate of 2.4dollars to a pound or whatever it is today, it really does seem like things would be more equal if it were 1 dollar = 1 pound. *shrug*


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## Megami (Nov 19, 2007)

If you leave Australia but plan on going back, you let your health insurance provider know you are leaving the country. They should be able to keep your membership 'on hold' and therefore you don't pay insurance while you are away, but you also don't lose the years you have been in and the bonus for joining before you were 30 (or is it now 35).

Just make sure that your pre-exisiting conditions will still be covered under this arrangement.


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## frankh84 (Apr 21, 2010)

Stick with private insurance. I recommend Pacific Prime Insurance Brokers. They draw up a comparison table of options from all the largest insurers to give you the best policy. They cover families, groups and individuals abnd have a strong presence in the Asia pacific region as well as Oceania.
Cheers,
F.


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## FreeSpirit1 (Nov 30, 2009)

*Health insurance*



Stravinsky said:


> Hi there
> Your NI number goes on your health card too and is a general NI / Health identifier, although the card has its own number as well.
> 
> Private health care is very expensive in the UK if you dont get it through a company scheme. I used to pay about £110 a month whilst in a company scheme, but when I came out of the scheme and tried to join as an individual it doubled! Plus, I'm afraid, they most often dont cover existing conditions.
> ...


Picking up on an old question, can anyone direct me to the right place to get a quote for Health Insurance in the UK.
I have an Ancestry Work visa in the pipeline and plan to arrive in the UK May 2012 and have a job to start around June 2012. Luckily for me an old employer from NZ has an opening at the complete opposite end of England I had planned to go to but flexibility is the name of the game.
I have no right to NHS so will need Health Insurance. I am 61 and have never needed to use my Insurance here in Oz until recently when I slipped and cracked my knee cap so understand the importance of having it.


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## Joppa (Sep 7, 2009)

FreeSpirit1 said:


> Picking up on an old question, can anyone direct me to the right place to get a quote for Health Insurance in the UK.
> I have an Ancestry Work visa in the pipeline and plan to arrive in the UK May 2012 and have a job to start around June 2012. Luckily for me an old employer from NZ has an opening at the complete opposite end of England I had planned to go to but flexibility is the name of the game.
> I have no right to NHS so will need Health Insurance. I am 61 and have never needed to use my Insurance here in Oz until recently when I slipped and cracked my knee cap so understand the importance of having it.


No right to NHS? Everyone who is legally resident in UK regardless of nationality can make use of the NHS. Being on ancestry visa is no bar. NHS isn't public fund to which you have no recourse.

When you arrive, just go to a GP surgery and register as NHS patient. That's all. Simple, and free!

See http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/v...e-in-uk/rightsandresponsibilities/healthcare/

As an Australian citizen, you are covered by reciprocal health agreement, so you can access hospital treatment in your first year.


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## FreeSpirit1 (Nov 30, 2009)

Joppa said:


> No right to NHS? Everyone who is legally resident in UK regardless of nationality can make use of the NHS. Being on ancestry visa is no bar. NHS isn't public fund to which you have no recourse.
> 
> When you arrive, just go to a GP surgery and register as NHS patient. That's all. Simple, and free!
> 
> ...


Many thanks, I must of misunderstood when I was reading the jungle of paper, I thought they said I was pn my own when it came to health - nice to know.


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## FreeSpirit1 (Nov 30, 2009)

*Nhs*



FreeSpirit1 said:


> Many thanks, I must of misunderstood when I was reading the jungle of paper, I thought they said I was pn my own when it came to health - nice to know.


More than a year later in the UK I have just had all my teeth done on a NHS scheme, I opted for private but the dentist insisted as it's such a large amount of work, fortunately I have had no need for a Dr but it has been comforting knowing that it is there when or if needed. 
Upon reading my visa correctly it says 'no recourse to public funds' luckily I have a job


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## RexyRead (Mar 28, 2012)

FreeSpirit1 said:


> More than a year later in the UK I have just had all my teeth done on a NHS scheme, I opted for private but the dentist insisted as it's such a large amount of work, fortunately I have had no need for a Dr but it has been comforting knowing that it is there when or if needed. Upon reading my visa correctly it says 'no recourse to public funds' luckily I have a job


I, like yourself, have moved to the UK from Australia since May last year, as some-one said earlier, I was advised to register at a health clinic for a NHS number, they in turn directed me next door to a dental surgery who registered me the same way, all basic checks and prods, all finished in minutes.

Three months later, I suffered an acute case of Pancreatitis and I am not joking when I say it nearly killed me. I was in intensive care in the Stoke On Trent University Hospital for nearly six weeks, followed by another six weeks in a normal ward recovering. Since then, I have been looked after my doctor at my local clinic and have had visits to the hospital monitoring my recovery on a regular basis. I just had my Gall Bladder removed a month ago as this was the problem in the first place and I am on the road to good health as I write this.

The cost? Nothing! NHS has a recipicol arrangement with Australia in regard to health care, the hospital asked me for my Medicare card and that was it. Normal clinic visits are covered anyway, the NHS system covers all who are bonified residents in the UK.

NHS, here the UK, is first class and has been rated the best health system in the world....Yes, sometimes you might have to wait awhile to see a doctor, but I have certainly waited longer back home to see one and the arrogance of some real old specialists always made me wonder why I was paying premium privates health insurance.

Now I have been here for twelve months, and I am a duel citizen, I am now covered by the NHS system completely, the only thing that is not recipicol is any entitlements you might have with the Department of Veteran a Affairs, an Australian War Veteran is not covered by the UK system, one has to pay for that treatment, then claim back from DVA back home 

I will finish now with high praise of the NHS, it's great! I cannot thank the doctors, nurses and staff, highly enough at the Stoke On Trent University Hospital, they were professional in everything they did, their care and dedication to all patiences, was remarkable to see and more so to receive....every time I go back to see a specialist, I always bump into a staff member I have met before, they always come over to say "hi how are ya?"..... Maybe they like this crazy Australian from Leek, ha, ha


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## FreeSpirit1 (Nov 30, 2009)

*Get well soonest*

So sorry to hear you have been unwell but thanks for sharing, what a great country we moved to!


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