Vitality has announced a series of enhancements to its health insurance offering to provide boosted cover and greater support across physiotherapy, mental health, cancer treatment, and enhanced digital care pathways.
Vitality will remove medical underwriting for Talking Therapies therapy after seeing the measurable impact of Talking Therapies on their members, with only 1.2 per cent requiring additional mental health services or support within three months of receiving Talking Therapies.
Furthermore, Talking Therapies will not be disqualified due to any medical concerns. All members with Personal Healthcare, Business Healthcare, and Corporate Healthcare plans now have much easier access to counselling and CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy).
Additionally, for members who have Vitality’s Mental Health Cover option, the annual limit on in-patient and day-patient coverage will be removed, and these members will now be able to receive multiple episodes of acute care totalling up to 28 days of in-patient and 28 days of day-patient treatment at a time.
Members of Core Cover will now be able to access six sessions of physiotherapy without having to purchase separate outpatient coverage. This means that all VitalityHealth Core Cover members have access to complete primary care support, including Talking Therapies, physiotherapy, and virtual GP, as part of their core coverage.
In addition to offering cutting-edge therapy and surgery, Vitality is launching a new Cancer Treatment Support Programme, powered by Onko, that will provide members undergoing cancer treatment with personalised counselling and one-on-one coaching to improve quality of life and clinical outcomes.
Members undergoing surgery, chemotherapy, or radiotherapy will receive personalised, multi-disciplinary support through the digital programme, which will include holistic support, physiotherapy, mental health support, exercise and getting active when you have cancer, nutrition, and self-help techniques. It will also direct users to other services and resources that may be beneficial to their overall health.
From November 2021 to June 2022, an initial pilot of this programme was conducted with Vitality members who had been diagnosed with breast, colon, pancreas, oesophageal, cervical, and ovarian cancer. The results showed that over 80 per cent of members met their weekly health goals, followed their individualised exercise plans, and had an NPS score of 83 per cent.
Vitality also announced some significant enhancements to the Vitality Treatment Hub, which allows members to request care online, receive immediate approval, and then schedule an appointment with a consultant directly. To gain authorization for further care, any health member can now start a claim online, regardless of their underwriting type, time on risk, or the disease they are claiming for.
VitalityHealth managing director Dr Keith Klintworth says: “The past few years have changed how we are accessing healthcare and have highlighted the importance on providing more digital services, early intervention and additional wellbeing support within PMI. Today we have been able to detail a number of enhancements to our proposition that will further meet these needs and deliver against our vision of the future of health insurance.
“Today’s announcements include a rapid expansion in access to mental health services, providing the most holistic cover on the market, the introduction of a range of support pathways and services for people with cancer, and we have also set out how we will further harness the power of digital technology within our Care Hub so our members can all request care online. These are all areas which will make a significant difference to our members and where we see scope to have a bigger impact, further pushing the limits of what a health insurer provides.”
Vitality also introduced a new Vitality Program partner, premier bike and equipment brand Specialized, at the Business Update. Members will receive up to a 25 per cent discount on a full-priced Specialized bike and accessories.
Klintworth adds: “Today we have also announced an exciting new partnership with Specialized. Cycling is beneficial to our physical and mental health, and our members have been asking us to include more cycling options within the Vitality Programme.
“We are therefore delighted to be able to respond and to announce this partnership today, with a brand whose focus on promoting better health through cycling, perfectly aligns with our own core purpose. The partnership will offer a discount on Specialized bikes, which are suitable for the inexperienced rider, right through to the professional.”