19 million adults worried sick according to research from CS Healthcare

Feb. 12, 2009 - PRLog -- A survey of 1,000 UK adults commissioned by CS Healthcare has found that nearly 40% – equivalent to 19 million* adults - worry about their health every day, with a further 30% worrying at least once a week.  When asked about the severity of their concern, over a third of adults said they were in a “mild” or “constant” state of anxiety about their health, while nearly 600,000 adults are so worried about being unwell that they could not sleep at night.

When asked what caused them most anxiety about being unwell, unsurprisingly a quarter stated fear of pain, while concern over waiting times (should they fall ill), came a close second with 18% of respondents.  4.6% (equivalent to over 2.2m adults) said that potential cost for treatment caused them greatest concern, while a similar amount cited hospital cleanliness. Interestingly, twice as many men worried about cost rather than cleanliness (6.2% for the former and 2.8% for the latter) while for women this was reversed (3% worried about cost while 6.2% worried about cleanliness).

David Royle, Chief Executive of CS Healthcare said “The UK public is sometimes presented as being unconcerned about their health, which is clearly not the case at all. Although it is not unexpected for people to be worried about pain or death, it is disappointing that issues like waiting times, cleanliness and cost are causing concern.”

One in six adults have Private Medical Insurance (PMI). Of those that have PMI, over 70% said they would think twice about claiming if it meant they would lose their No Claims Discount (NCD) – demonstrating that having a NCD may actually deter consumers from seeking treatment.  

David Royle continued : “Many people turn to private medical insurance for peace of mind, knowing that they will have access to the best clinicians, quickly and that costs will be met by the provider. To then not claim for fear of losing a no claims discount doesn’t make sense and runs counter to the very reason people take out health insurance in the first place. We are fundamentally opposed to no claims discounts and do not offer them on any of our products. We are here to provide peace of mind and the very best care and service to our customers if and when they need it. ”

The CS Healthcare survey also questioned which illnesses people worried most about. More than half of all respondents said cancer was their greatest fear. The second most feared condition was heart attack amongst over 15% of respondents, although this was much higher amongst men (21.6% versus 9.5% of female respondents) and those between 35 and 44 (19%). Interestingly, twice the number of respondents between 18 and 34 most feared diabetes (over 6%) than those over 35. While only 1.4% of the overall population fear STIs, this increases to 4% for the 25-34 age bracket.

Asked specifically about the perceived cost of basic individual PMI, the average response was £44.80 per month. This compares with £13.33** which is the starting price for PMI from CS Healthcare.

Back to news summary page

- End-

Notes to editors:

For more information please contact Natalie Orringe or James Terry on 020 7360 7878

Or email norringe@teamspiritpr.com or jterry@teamspiritpr.com

Research Methodology:

Research was carried out by Lightspeed Research, during October 2008, who polled a statistically representative 1,000 UK adult sample.  

*39% of a statistically representative 1,000 UK adult sample. This and subsequent population figures have been generated based on population figures from the National Office of Statistics.

Sources: Office for National Statistics, General Register Office for Scotland, Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency. Mid-2007 Population Estimates: United Kingdom; estimated resident population by single year of age and sex

http://www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=15106

On this basis, there are estimated to be 47,864,400 adults aged over 18 in the UK.

**£13.33 starting price for a CS Healthcare policy:

Premiums start from just £13.33 a month for a 30 year old on a co-payment plan. These premiums are valid until 31/08/09 and are based on essential cover, co-payment and partnership hospitals. Co-payment is a way of sharing the cost to keep premiums down – members pay 15% of the cost of treatments up to a ceiling of £1,500, per policy year.

CS Healthcare :

CS Healthcare a not-for-profit friendly society has provided health insurance since 1929 to those that work or have worked (including their families) in the civil service, public service and not-for-profit organisations.

Once a member 100% find CS Healthcare service ‘excellent’ or ‘good’.”^

One in four members join as a result of personal recommendations by existi ng members.*

CS Healthcare freephone – 0800 917 4325.

CS Healthcare website – http://www.cshealthcare.co.uk

Key Benefits of CS Healthcare health insurance:

Access to over 300 hospitals across the UK.

Fast, direct claim settlement with expertise and guidance at every stage.

Flexible choice of cover, designed to suit your needs and budget.

A mutual health insurer that reinvests surplus funds to benefit its members.

^CS Healthcare member surveys carried out in Jan – Dec 2007.

*Internal membership data Jan – Dec 2007. Please note that photographs and product literature are available on request.

# # #

CS Healthcare a not-for-profit friendly society has provided health insurance since 1929 to those that work or have worked (including their families) in the civil service, public service and not-for-profit organisations.