Couples’ Health Insurance

Health Insurance for Couples

Couples’ health insurance, which is also known as “joint health insurance”, is a single private health insurance policy that covers both you and your partner against a range of potential medical issues. This type of policy can give you both peace of mind knowing that you’ll be covered if one of you gets sick, and is sometimes cheaper than taking out separate health insurance policies too. 

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How does couples’ health insurance differ from individual health insurance policies? 

The most obvious difference is that both you and your partner will be covered by a single health insurance policy, which means you’ll only have one premium to pay instead of two, and one policy renewal date to remember instead of two. 

Beyond simplifying the health insurance process for couples, this type of joint health insurance policy is often a little cheaper than two separate policies, even though it will be more expensive than insuring just one person. 

Are there specific advantages we should be aware of with a joint health insurance policy as a couple? 

The biggest advantage is the reduced amount of admin involved because you and your partner will only need one form, you will both deal with the same insurance provider, and there will only be one renewal date to remember. 

In some cases, you’ll also be able to save on your health insurance premium when you opt for a joint policy. This isn’t always guaranteed, but many couples do find that their joint policy is a little cheaper than what they’d pay for separate policies. 

What are the disadvantages of health insurance for couples? 

There are two main considerations with this type of policy that you need to bear in mind: 

• The risk assessment will take both partners into account, so if one partner is riskier from a health insurance perspective it could put the cost up overall 
• When you claim on a health insurance policy it can result in higher premiums in the future, and with a joint health insurance policy there is a greater likelihood that one of you might have to claim. 

So if one of us gets sick that will end up putting the premium up for both of us if we have couples’ health insurance? 

Yes, it can do. 

Your history of insurance claims is one of the risk factors that will be taken into account when insurance providers are calculating your premium, and with couples’ health insurance, there may be a higher risk of a claim at some stage, since that one policy covers two people instead of one. 

What does health insurance for a couple actually cover them for?  

That’ll depend on which health insurance company you decide to go with, and also on what coverage level you opt for.  

‘Treatment only’ or ‘treatment and care’ policies will cover you both for things like outpatient treatment after you’ve been diagnosed by the NHS, in-patient care in a medical facility or hospital after diagnosis, and tests or scans after a course of treatment. 

Those ‘treatment only’ policies will generally exclude any kind of diagnosis or diagnostic testing though, which is why you’d need an NHS diagnosis first if you have that coverage level. 

Fully comprehensive health insurance for couples, on the other hand, will cover all of the things that a treatment-only policy covers, but will also include coverage for private diagnostic testing, scans, and blood tests. 

Can we tailor our couples’ health insurance policy to suit our specific needs as a couple? 

Yes, every health insurance policy, including couples’ health insurance, will offer you a number of coverage options, with the two most common options being ‘treatment only’, and ‘fully comprehensive’. As the name suggests, fully comprehensive health insurance will generally offer both you and your partner more comprehensive coverage. 

How much does couples’ health insurance cost, on average? 

The cost of your couple’s health insurance policy will take a wide range of different risk factors into account, relating to both you and your partner. For instance, your ages, occupation, medical history, lifestyle, drinking habits and smoking habits will all influence the cost of health insurance for couples. 

Given the complexity of the insurance premium calculation, and the fact that so many aspects of that calculation are specific to you and your partner, the best plan is to compare health insurance for couples and then go with the provider that offers the best coverage at the most competitive price.  

If smoking is one of those risk factors, what happens if one of us smokes but the other one doesn’t? 

Smoking is a major risk factor for health insurance providers, so if one of you smokes then the cost of your couple’s health insurance will almost certainly increase and with some providers, it might increase quite sharply.  

If both you and your partner smoke then your premium will likely increase in cost even more, but even if only one of you smokes the rise will likely be significant. That’s one of the reasons we’d recommend you quit smoking, which could not only improve your health but could save you quite a lot of money in the long run. 

If only one partner smokes, and you’re unable to quit, It might be worth comparing the cost of two individual health insurance policies to see which option is more cost-effective,  

What happens if one of us is quite a bit older than the other? 

Private health insurance generally costs more for older people, since they have a higher risk of getting sick. If a couple’s health insurance policy covers a couple where one of the partners is significantly older than the other this could push up the overall cost of insuring them both. It might be worth comparing the cost of two individual health insurance policies with the cost of this health insurance for couples, to see which option is cheaper. 

What can we do as a couple to reduce the cost of our joint health insurance? 

There are two good approaches to finding cheaper health insurance for couples: 

• Shopping around by comparing policies from a range of different providers 
• Making lifestyle changes that will improve your risk profile in the eyes of the health insurance provider. 

When it comes to comparing health insurance for couples, Quotezone.co.uk is here to help you with that. 

But before you compare policies it might be a good idea to make a number of lifestyle changes, such as quitting smoking, reducing the amount of alcohol you consume and increasing the amount of exercise you do. 

Why not make some of these lifestyle changes as a couple? For example, you could begin exercising together instead of heading for drinks together, which could kill two birds with one stone. 

Are pre-existing conditions covered by a couples’ health insurance policy? 

No, in most cases a standard health insurance policy for couples won’t cover any pre-existing conditions either partner had been diagnosed with before the policy start date. 

What about pregnancy, is that covered by couples’ health insurance? 

No, most health insurance providers won’t cover the cost of pregnancy care when one of the partners is pregnant, and usually won’t cover private childbirth costs either. 

What about fertility treatment or IVF, will that be covered by a couples’ policy? 

No, IVF often isn’t covered by your couples’ health insurance policy, for the same reason pregnancy care often isn’t covered – health insurance providers consider it a lifestyle choice, rather than an unforeseen medical issue. 

What else does couples’ health insurance usually exclude from coverage? 

Besides pregnancy, childbirth and IVF, some of the most common things couples’ health insurance might exclude from coverage are: 

• Pre-existing medical conditions 
• Diabetes 
• Asthma 
• Arthritis 
• Food allergies or intolerances 
• Menopause 

What about if one of us needs emergency treatment, will that be covered? 

No, most couples’ insurance policies won’t include private medical treatment in an A&E setting, so you will need to visit an NHS A&E in a medical emergency.