Is Cosmetic Surgery Covered by Health Insurance?

Health Insurance is an important policy to have if you need treatment that has a long waiting list on the NHS or want access to the best in private health care without paying for it yourself.

This does not mean, however, that health insurance will cover everything. Most of the conditions that health insurance policies cover are medical treatments related to short term conditions that are more likely to be successful (and curable) in their treatment. These include a lot of out patient procedures and the costs related to them – these include some surgeries when you are a day patient.

As a result, procedures such as cosmetic surgery are not usually covered. This is why it is important to check the small print on any insurance policies and shop around for ones that include it. Cosmetic surgery is considered an elective surgery, which means that you decided to undergo, rather than a treatment you need medically as demonstrated as necessary by your doctor. Many medical insurance firms will not consider cosmetic surgery a necessary procedure, by which they consider it an aesthetic treatment that patients undergo because they are dissatisfied with their bodies.

Of course some cosmetic surgery procedures are undergone for reasons other than aesthetic ones. For example, rhinoplasty or septoplasty, are sometimes carried out for health benefits such as breathing issues. Another example could be where breast implants might be required after a patient has had a masectomy which involves the removal of the breasts in light of cancer. Another example could be a tummy tuck or liposuction treatment in an obese patient who has already exhausted dieting and exercising techniques and as a result such treatment leaves them open to heart disease and diabetes. Finally, breast reduction surgery could be carried out on someone who has discomfort with large breasts, which could be causing them back problems. So the distinction lies in what the treatments are needed for and whether they are aesthetic or for a medical problem.

The information you need to look out for in a policy is a list that summarises everything that is not covered. This could take the form of a ‘key facts’ document that outlines the limits of the policy and what kind of medical cover you have.

For more information on health insurance you can visit Medical Cover who have a wealth of infomation on private health cover.