Health insurance is taken out by about 50% of the population in Ireland. probably another 10 to 20% have Medical Cards. In the UK only about 11% of the population have health insurance.
If you don’t have medical insurance in Ireland – there are caps on how much you have to pay for hospital stays and prescriptions.
If you are admitted to hospital in Ireland for any reason – without health insurance or a medical card – the charge for in-patient/day services is €75 per day up to a maximum of €750 in any 12 consecutive months. All the treatment you recieve in hospital, all procedures, scans, surgery etc and all follow up out-patient treatment is free of any further charge.
If you are taking out health insurance there are three providers – VHI , Irish Life Health and Laya Health
We have an article about Comparing Health Insurance here
Compare these important points before you choose an insurer:
- Always check the excess of the plan for both inpatient and outpatient cover.
- Look at the student rates and what the cut off age is for a student.
Check the number of hospitals and treatment centres covered on your plan. - Look at the type of hospital your plan entitles you to and the type of bed in that hospital .
- Ensure there is adequate cover for A&E abroad.
- Depending on your life stage, ensure there is adequate maternity cover for you.
- If you choose a primary care plan, make sure your family can pool their benefits.
- If switching health insurer, there should be no loss in cover or no re-serving of waiting periods as long as you are switching to a comparable plan.
- Remember – you don’t have to wait until renewal to switch health insurer