The traditional view of health insurance is that it is a very important cover for families to put in place to protect themselves when they get sick. It has enabled families to afford better healthcare privately by enabling them to access more privacy in hospitals, access to private hospitals and the services of expert consultants in a timely fashion. It also provided families with protection against day-to-day medical expenses and also gave them access to a whole range of other medical benefits.

The good news is that health insurance still provides all of these benefits, and indeed these relatively basic benefits have in themselves been significantly improved in recent years.

The even better news is that health insurance now goes far beyond these expected benefits and now plays a much broader role in helping us all to improve our health and lifestyle. The reason for this is quite simple. The health insurers recognise that if they can help us be fitter and in better health, we will be sick less frequently. As a result, we will claim less (which is good for them!) and this is turn will allow them to dampen down premiums. So everyone ends up a winner! These additional benefits are built in to some health insurance policies as packages that you choose from, when taking out the policy. It’s important therefore that you talk these options through with your health adviser to get the right packages in place for you. Of course that’s what we’re here for at Lyons Financial Services…

We thought it would be useful to give you a sense of some of these additional benefits that you can now get through your health insurance policy.

 

Sports Packages

Health insurers will now pay a contribution towards a range of expenses that you might incur in your efforts to keep fit! These can include,

• Sports club / Gym membership
• Sports massages
• Personal training sessions
• Wearable fitness trackers
• Foam rollers
• Fitted gum shields and other protective sports gear
• Physiotherapy and sports psychologist visits
• Metabolic testing, VO2 Max testing, SADS screening

 

Travel Benefits

Some health policies now include full travel insurance cover, enabling you to avoid that additional expense before you go on holidays. Some policies also extend to,

• Travel consultations
• Travel vaccinations
• Prescriptions abroad

 

Family & Kids Health

Some packages are designed with the younger members of families particularly in mind. These include a contribution towards an additional range of benefits such as,

• Flu vaccination
• Baby swimming classes
• Child developmental tests
• Child nutritionist
• Child speech & language therapist
• Child sports club membership
• Child / teen counselling
• First aid course
• Parenting course

 

Dental and Optical Benefits

Under some policies, you can choose to have a contribution made towards expenses that might be incurred in these areas such as,

• Contact lenses
• Emergency dental care
• Eye tests
• Laser eye surgery
• Teeth whitening
• Designer prescription glasses
• Orthodontic benefit
• Dental x-ray, check-up, scale and polish

 

As you can see, there are lots of interesting lifestyle benefits available. While your health insurance provides that all-important financial protection for when you get sick or have an accident, it can also be viewed as a financial leg-up for a wide range of lifestyle scenarios too.

If you would like to find out more about the various lifestyle packages that could be available through your health insurance policy, please just give Lyons Financial Services a call at 01 801 5808.