The latest PHIN data on private medical admissions show that treatments in H1 2023 reached a record 443,000, driven by an all-time high number of insured admissions.
 
It is a 7% increase on the 414,000 in H1 2022 and is 13% higher than the 391,000 admissions record in H1 2019 before the pandemic caused significant disruption in the NHS.
 
Insured admissions have been a major driver of the growth in private treatments – insurance admissions (predominantly led by employer funded Private Medical Insurance benefits) make up over two-thirds (69%) of total treatments in H1 2023 and rose 12% year-on-year compared to 2022 while self-pay registered a small decline.
 
Brett Hill, Head of Health and Protection at leading independent consultancy Broadstone, commented: “As NHS waiting lists continue to swell, we are seeing a direct knock-on impact in the private healthcare market.
 
“Admissions in the first half of 2023 are at record levels and are primarily driven by the Private Medical Insurance market, demonstrating the growing awareness among UK employers that they need to find ways to fund the healthcare needs of their workforce.
 
“There is usually a dip in admissions in Q2 which we saw again this year, but private admissions were still up across all UK nations compared to the same quarter in 2022 and we expect to see further strong growth in the insurance market through the rest of this year and beyond.
 
“As employers continue to face a battle against economic inactivity because of long-term ill-health, provision of employer-funded healthcare is also expected to increase, helping more employees access the healthcare they need to stay active and productive in the workplace.
 
“The self-pay market appears to have reached a ceiling with levels plateauing around 20,000 admissions a quarter higher, on average, than pre-pandemic. It indicates a strong appetite for people to fund their own healthcare in the face of our ongoing public health crisis.”
 
https://www.phin.org.uk/news/phin-private-market-update-december-2023