What benefits are on a cash plan?

A cash plan is a policy that you pay monthly that allows you to claim cash back on everyday health care costs. Often referred to as a health cash plan, there are a number of providers in the UK on a company and personal basis.

Who are the main cash plan providers in the UK?

Bupa ∙ Healthshield ∙ The Exeter ∙ Medicash ∙ Simplyhealth ∙ Westfield Health

The above providers are all on the panel used by SMP Healthcare Ltd. Each provider offer different levels of cover and benefits. If you would like an extensive range of alternative therapies cover then Healthshield may be your better option. If however you would like cover for diagnostic tests then Westfield Health may be more appropriate.

Do cash plans offer cover for pre-existing conditions?

Although personal cash plans often carry a qualifying period , many company cash plans do not have these same rules in place. In fact, most company paid health cash plans with 3 or more members will cover treatment for pre-existing conditions. A qualifying period is a period of time that must elapse before you can make a claim for a specific benefit.

What benefits are available?

Health cash plans are designed to offer cash back on everyday healthcare treatments. All providers offer their own table of benefits and the list below is not exhaustive. You would expect to see cover for all or some of the following:

  • Dental
  • Dental Accident
  • Optical
  • Physiotherapy
  • Osteopathy
  • Chiropractic
  • Health Screening
  • Chiropody
  • Counselling (telephone or face to face)
  • Private medical insurance excess cover

You may also find an element of cover for consultations, diagnostic testing and alternative therapies are included.

Is it the same as private medical insurance?

A health cash plan is not a private medical insurance policy although they can be used well side by side. As an example, private medical insurance will offer cover for the high cost in-patient and day-patient surgery, hospital charges and anaesthetists costs.  Health cash plans are far cheaper than private medical insurance and the benefits they offer reflect this price difference.

If you would like to find out more about a health insurance for your business, our team at SMP Healthcare would be happy to find a policy that suits your requirements. They are easy to set up and the claims process is now a simple one, with claim payments being paid as quickly as 48 hours after an eligible claim is made.

Telephone 01245 929129

Email enquiries@smphealthcare.com

Image by <a href=”https://pixabay.com/users/RobinHiggins-1321953/?utm_source=link-attribution&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=image&amp;utm_content=2681507″>Robin Higgins</a> from <a href=”https://pixabay.com/?utm_source=link-attribution&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=image&amp;utm_content=2681507″>Pixabay</a>