Contractors' Questions: What will a health check via my company cover?

Contractor’s Question: To have an annual private health check, what policy circumstances need to be present and would such a check include other treatments, such as chiropractor services or X-rays?

Expert’s Answer: It is difficult to generalise about providers’ offerings across the whole market. Taking the specific example of the two policy options IT contractors tend to select through us, each of them does indeed provide access to a private health check. With such policies, there is fixed allowance for the health check (£200 with the two cited), and this is set per person, per policy year.

The check, which usually takes about 60 minutes, is quite comprehensive. It covers full body screens, wellman, wellwoman, bone density screening, breast screening and heart disease screening. Such screening must be carried out by medically qualified staff in a hospital or clinic, but the policyholder is free to choose where they want to go.

But the services you ask about, chiropractor and X-rays, would not be covered in the annual health check (of the two policies cited).  These treatments are covered, however, under the normal core cover of the policies outlined.

There may still be some benefit to you in proceeding with the check. It will test your heart, lungs, blood, urine and cholesterol. Then, a personal report is produced with specific results and any immediate healthcare recommendations. Other more comprehensive health checks are available, but any cost above the set limit would need to be met separately. All reports are private and confidential to the individual policyholder.

The expert was Simon Bradley, partner at WPA.