For too long, companies such as BUPA, AXA and some other private medical insurance companies (PMI’s) and intermediaries such as Nuffield Health have been underpaying Physiotherapists, Osteopaths, podiatrists, chiropractors and alike. These companies charge the customer a lot of money, often more than other smaller PMI’s. In effect they charge more for cover and pay less to the provider. Purely chasing profits, they make it untenable for providers to continue to work with them as a company and the patient suffers. 

They enforce contracts and in the last 10 years there has been no increase in the offered fees, no ability to negotiate and an attitude of ‘like it or lump it’. 

By signing this petition we will be able to show the PMI’s that we are no longer prepared to accept their ‘profits over patients’ approach to healthcare. 

We hope that this raises awareness of the issue and will ensure that PMI’s accept our providers fees without increasing the cost to the patient. 

We also wish to be in a position to use our autonomy and clinical reasoning as to the number of treatments our patients require and no longer be held to a maximum of 5 treatment sessions. 5 visits is not enough for some of the complex patients we see and as such means leaving a patient ‘part treated’ due to the lack of funding from the PMI. 

The result of this petition will ensure that patients receive the very best care, whilst the practitioners can achieve their normal, reasonable rates of pay.