Insurance in The United Kingdom

The United Kingdom's national supplier of medical health insurance coverage is called the National Health Services, or NHS. The National Health Service provides many health related services, but they are not all completely free. Hospital treatment, ambulances, and consultations with a physician are always free of charge for all those who live in Britain, as well as for citizens of other countries in the European Union and a few other countries that have reciprocal agreements with Britain, for example Russia and Bulgaria.

Dentists, eye doctors and prescriptions, however, are not completely covered by public insurance. Britain's public program was the first of its kind in the world. Today, it is beset with problems such as long waiting lists for medical treatment, and in some hospitals, a lowered quality of health care. Many people in the United Kingdom who can afford it still prefer to obtain private health insurance coverage for shorter waiting times and private treatment, and others get supplemental private coverage offered to them by their employers. Anyone who is not covered by the National Health Service, such as people who visit the UK but do not live there, can also get private medical insurance coverage.