Standard Life Private Healthcare
Standard Life private healthcare services were a major part of the private health insurance market until recently. As part of the general reorganisation and consolidation of this market, the company no longer offers private health insurance, its health division now forming part of PruHealth.
About Standard Life
Since acquiring Prime Health in 1994 and FirstAssist in 2006, Standard Life private healthcare has now been sold to Prudential, and renamed PruHealth. Customers who were already policy holders with Standard Life private healthcare were not affected by the sale (in 2010). Those Standard Life policy holders have no change to their terms and conditions, and will be contacted in due course as the policy is due for renewal.
Since taking over Standard Life private healthcare, PruHealth is one of the leading UK private health insurers, and is now the fourth largest such company in the UK.
The Standard Life Group which previously operated Standard Life private healthcare now concentrates on its core businesses of pensions and investments. It is based in Edinburgh, Scotland with worldwide operations in more than 60 counties. Standard Life was established as the Standard Life Assurance Company in 1825 and in 2006 it was demutualized and floated on the London Stock Exchange. Standard Life Bank PLC was sold to Barclays in October 2009.
Products
Standard Life Healthcare offered a Primecare Plus policy that had the following features (subject to general exclusions and other qualifications):
- Choice of nationwide network of hospitals for treatment. An upgrade option for certain specialist London hospitals.
- Full refund of hospital charges. Day-patient and in-patient, operating theatre charges and surgical appliances.
- Full refund of medical or surgery fees, including anaesthetist fees.
- Full refund of in-patient therapy (including physiotherapy) fees. Also diagnostic fees including radiology, CT and MRI scans.
- Full refund of in-patient and day-patient cancer treatment (including radiotherapy, chemotherapy).
- Full refund of in-patient and day-patient psychiatric treatment.
- Full refund of out-patient consultations before and after hospital stay.
- Out-patient physiotherapy (annual limit £1,000).
- Full refund of out-patient radiotherapy or chemotherapy.
- Out-patient psychiatric treatment (annual limit £1,200).
- Parent accommodation full refund.
- Private ambulance full refund
- Post discharge home nursing (annual limit 13 weeks).
- Cash benefit if treated by NHS (annual limit £2,000).
- Maternity benefit (£100 per child).
- Emergency worldwide medical cover (annual limit £3,000,000).
- Personal accident cover (annual limit £10,000).
- Free medical help line.
- Cover available for existing conditions.
- Consultations for acupuncture, osteopathy, chiropractic and homeopathy (annual limit £1,000).
- Premium waiver in event of policyholder unemployment or inability to return to work for medical reasons (with limitations).
- Permanent and total disability benefit (annual limit £10,000).
- Critical illness benefit (annual limit £1,000).
- Dental expenses (annual limit £1,000).
- Coverage of unmarried children under the age of 21.
Post Sale
Standard Life private healthcare products are now administered by Prudential, as mentioned above. In the UK, Standard Life Healthcare has been rebranded PruHealth. Full integration of the companies was expected to be complete by the end of 2010, with a range of products to be introduced combining the best of both companies' offerings.