bobrho

Hello, we are planning to move to Wellington in August 2017 with our extended family. We have been in touch with a family who moved there a few years ago and were very settled and happy. We were therefore shocked to hear that they are moving back to the UK to get further cancer treatment for the husband as he has run out of money to pay for this in New Zealand! This has made us feel worried and concerned that medical insurance will be vital. Please can anyone tell us of their experiences of getting treatment when illness arises and whether there are affordable policies to cover the serious problems which could occur?

Justcol

I don't know the details of the families issues
but it could (most probably) be because nz
has funded and unfunded drugs.
Funded ones are available on prescription, just like
in the UK. Unfunded are not and you have to pay
full price for them, which, depending on the drug
can be thousands of dollars.
This is no different to how things are in the uk,
Not every drug is available on the NHS and
those which are available are not necessarily the best.
I personally have never had an issue with the standard
of healthcare down here. I'm in my 50's and have
reached that point in life where I need a regular MOT and service
I was taken I'll in December and spent all
January in hospical, the treatment and level of services
were outstanding, no checking if its available
or waiting for appointments.

Justcol

Sorry, I waffled on and forgot to answer your question

No, its not necessary, our public health service is very good.

bobrho

Thanks Justcol, very helpful.

Sparkleydiva

I've always had private insurance while in NZ and feel it is necessary. I think the public system responds well to inpatient care needs and emergency situations but if you need a referral to a specialist it can and sometimes is refused.

I've experienced this personally in spite of having a particular diagnosis, the neurology department at Auckland refused to see me even though I needed help and I had to pay privately. My daughter, now 28 was referred to a rheumatologist 3 years ago and they refused to see her too. They sent a letter back to the GP which, fortunately for us was actually sent to our home and not the GP, saying that the GP should just give her analgesia and sleeping tablets for her symptoms - no tests, no specialist review. I wrote to the CEO of the DHB and she was then seen on the public system and ended up with a diagnosis of inflammatory arthritis and Lupus at age 25; so I feel quite strongly that the public system does not respond adequately in such instances (she doesn't have insurance).

jmh

My mum had a heart attack 10+ years ago and got excellent treatment and a pacemaker fitted. She continues to get regular checks and consultant appointments at no cost.

My dad had a stroke 18 months ago. All treatment was free. I'm guessing if he had insurance he might have got a private room. Given my dad is one of life's social butterflies, that might not have been a better option for him.

What I have heard from others is that if you depend on the state-funded system you may have to wait for non-urgent treatment.

I looked at insurance and thought it was really expensive. I would probably put that same amount into a savings account.

Sparkleydiva

Insurance with Southern Cross for 2 of us, early 50's is $86/fortnight

bobrho

We appreciate these helpful responses

escapedtonz

I don't feel it is necessary, however with hindsight I'd probably stump up the premium for private cover for the family if I had to.
Luckily I get Southern Cross Regularcare as part of my employment package which covers everyone in the family living under our roof.
We use it to claim back 80% of all GP, prescription and medication costs we incur and it also has the benefit that a lot of procedures are covered up to a certain limit per year, however it doesn't cover specs or dental but we do get a comprehensive eye test every year and discounted equipment should we need to purchase spectacles.
I've recently had an ultrasound with FNA of a big lump I found in my throat which luckily has proved to be nothing sinister. Total cost $400 but all taken care of.
They also covered 80% of the cost of all ultrasounds my wife had during her pregnancy where only the first one would have been free.
We had our 2nd baby 9 weeks early and he spent 6 weeks in SCBU and the care was totally fee free, phenomenal and still continues to be until he's around 5 years old.

Bo-Jangles

I think you can get anything from abysmal / adequate or exceptional care in either of the UK or NZ systems depending on many variables. You will almost always get exceptional care in an acute emergency situation because of the way admission targets are set in both countries; NZ has a lower target at 6 hours between arrival and admission (UK 4 Hours).

Injuries from accidents are generally covered by ACC but they are apt to fob you off into primary sector for physical therapies (for which you have to pay a proportion of the costs) for physios, acupuncture and such like. It's not in their interest to fix you up quickly or for the long term and it can be a very long process going week after week (or sometimes twice a week) for more of the same and paying for the privilege. It's all this stuff that costs and you can end up recycling through that system repeatedly for a long time and getting nowhere and without anyone making any attempt to making a real diagnosis of the problem. It all starts to add up and can be expensive if you have to pay privately for diagnostic testing for yourself, X-rays, ultra-sound.

I haven't looked at private health cover much to see what is / isn't covered but would certainly consider it if I could afford it. Often in NZ it can be a heck of a long way to get to one of the main hospital and that is where I think private insurance comes into its own, because there are numerous private facilities that provide 24/7 Emergency and Medical clinics where you can go to for urgent medical attention and treatment of injuries but you do have to pay anything between $40 and $100 for a visit depending on time of day and whether it is covered by ACC or not. They can see you quickly and assess refer and take you to public facilities via ambulance if needs be.

Just an example of an issue I had after having had a tooth extracted at the dentists very late in the afternoon which developed later in the evening to the most excruciating and unbearable pain. Something that's clearly not a medical emergency but I had no idea what to do or where to go as it got increasingly worse during the middle of the night, having taken a combination of all the prescribed pain relief medication that I dare, I had to call someone.

I called up a private emergency clinic for advice and they said I could either come and get a prescription for some stronger pain killers (consultation fee of $85) or rock up to A&E and face a potential wait of six hours. In my state of pain and distress the thought of either of those two options was too much to bear and whilst I know many people would go to A&E for a stubbed toe, there's no way on earth I was going to present to A&E with something like that.

Fortunately with the help of some very old Tramadol pills and the advice of that lady over the phone, I did eventually manage to knock myself out enough to sleep through the until the next day.

bobrho

Thank you for taking the trouble to contribute to our thinking!