Re: WE ARE IN A RECESSION MONEY IS TIGHT BUT VHI to raise prices by 23%
Is it not the case though that you'll be treated in hospital whether you've medical insurance or not? In which case the insurance is simply a way of getting treatment more quickly?
Sadly it's not that simple. You go to your GP making loud "Oooowwww" noises. GP checks you out, says they've seen this before and that you need to get treatment X.
You have 3 options -
1) pay nothing, wait for treatment in the public service, and wait, and wait, and wait. Maybe for years. Spouse and others near you invest in ear mufflers and white noise machines to drown out possibly years of "Oooowwww" noises. You become a stoic and learn to put up with a lot of pain and loss of income due to inability to work, but happy in the knowledge that you will get treated eventually.
2) go via VHI or other private insurance scheme. GP rings consultants office, gets next available slot, maybe this week, maybe next month, certainly this year. You pay nothing other than years of accumulated premiums plus what ever VHI doesn't cover.
3) go direct to consultant. As above, GP rings consultants office, gets next available slot . . . you pay whatever the consultant (and hospital and others) charges which could be more or less than your accumulated savings from not paying premiums through the years. You realise how close you were to getting wiped out financially and reckon it might be a good time to hedge your bets and take out insurance.
Of course, option 1 should be a workable one but due to the length of (some) waiting lists many people prefer to cover their bases and go with option 2 and pay insurance premiums for years on end.
I've said it before, but I'll say it again here - the public health system is great in theory and people should be able to rely on it, but the way it is operated doesn't seem to be optimal by a long, long way.
z