Private options

Healthcare provision is not a one-size-fits-all issue and it seems apparent that the future of healthcare lies beyond the NHS and also beyond private medical insurance (PMI). In the long-term, the options open to consumers have to be more flexible and cost effective. According to research published in June 2004 by Populus, the UK public remain pessimistic about the future prospects for the NHS. Of the 1,000 people surveyed, more than four fifths believe that the quality of healthcare in the UK will decline in the next ten years, while 84% believe that change is necessary or urgent. Nearly...