A payment in kind is a payment made by something other than money, such as goods, vouchers or free accommodation.

An employer may also pay contributions to a private health scheme on behalf of its employees. For Carer’s Allowance purposes, such payments are treated as earnings where they arise as a result of the person’s gainful employment, in line with the relevant Social Security regulations and guidance. In calculating a person’s earnings, the value of these payments is taken into account alongside earnings from other sources.

Customers receiving Carer’s Allowance are responsible for reporting their earnings to the department, including any deductions from their gross earnings.

The Government strongly believes in the founding principles of the National Health Service, as a publicly funded service that is universal, and free at the point of use. Through the 10-Year Health Plan, the Government is committed to seeing this model thrive in the modern age. The plan focuses on delivering what matters to patients and taxpayers by transforming the model of care, rather than the model of funding, including through three shifts of moving from hospital to community, from sickness to prevention, and from analogue to digital.

The Government has therefore not undertaken an assessment of introducing a universal compulsory social insurance model for healthcare in the United Kingdom, nor does it have any plans to move away from a tax-funded NHS.

The Government strongly believes in the founding principles of the National Health Service, as a publicly funded service that is universal, and free at the point of use. Through the 10-Year Health Plan, the Government is committed to seeing this model thrive in the modern age. The plan focuses on delivering what matters to patients and taxpayers by transforming the model of care, rather than the model of funding, including through three shifts of moving from hospital to community, from sickness to prevention, and from analogue to digital.

The Government has therefore not undertaken an assessment of introducing a universal compulsory social insurance model for healthcare in the United Kingdom, nor does it have any plans to move away from a tax-funded NHS.

In England, the term ‘end-of-life care’ refers to the care given to those identified as likely to be in the last 12 months of their life.

Under the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) consumer duty, insurers must ensure that their products and claims processes deliver good outcomes for consumers. This includes those relating to terminal illness benefits. In October 2023, the FCA published a review of insurance companies’ approaches to terminal illness benefits, which is available on the FCA's website.

The findings from the review did not suggest that insurance firms are routinely delivering poor customer outcomes for terminal illness benefits. The review considered the requirement for a 12-month prognosis of death. The FCA concluded that it’s not clear that overall outcomes would be better for customers if insurers implemented a different time frame for the prognosis, for instance if policies required a diagnosis that the insured was likely to die within six months or 24 months, rather than 12 months. If the 12-month period was extended, it’s possible insurers would increase premiums to reflect increased risk. The FCA believes that insurance firms should be able to set their own policy terms by taking into account policy costs and the level of cover offered. The FCA suggested best practice was not to assume the 12-month requirement is appropriate without evidence that it meets customer needs.

The Government continues to monitor the FCA’s work in this area and supports its efforts to ensure that insurance products and claims processes meet the needs of terminally ill people.

The Department for Work and Pensions supports people nearing the end of life through the Special Rules for End of Life (SREL). This enables people who are likely to have less than 12 months to live to get faster, easier access to certain benefits, without needing to attend a medical assessment or serve waiting periods. In most cases, they receive the highest rate of benefit. SREL applies to five key benefits that support people with health conditions or disabilities: Personal Independence Payment; Disability Living Allowance; Attendance Allowance; Universal Credit; and Employment and Support Allowance.

Both private health insurance and private health care are currently exempt from VAT. However, the responsibility for any future amendments to the VAT regime would not fall to the Department of Health and Social Care, but to HM Treasury.

The role of the Care Quality Commission (CQC) is to regulate health and adult social care providers in England, for regulated activities set out in schedule one of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014.

There are no plans to extend the role of the CQC to regulate private medical insurers.

The government requires all insurers, including those providing private medical insurance, to treat customers fairly. This is enforced under the rules of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the independent body responsible for regulating and supervising the financial services industry, including insurance firms.

The FCA has a statutory objective to protect consumers. The government holds the FCA to account for how it advances its objectives, including through the FCA’s Annual Report which is laid before Parliament.

The FCA’s Consumer Duty sets high standards of consumer protection across regulated financial services firms, including a requirement for firms to put their customers’ needs first. The FCA monitors firms to ensure they meet these standards and has robust powers to take action where necessary.

HM Treasury has not made an assessment of the uptake of private health insurance over the last five years.

However, the Financial Conduct Authority’s Financial Lives 2024 survey, published in May 2025, estimated that in 2024, one in seven adults (14%) held private medical insurance, a 1 percentage point increase since 2022.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is an independent body responsible for regulating and supervising the conduct of the financial services industry, including firms that provide private medical insurance.

The Government is determined that all insurers should treat consumers fairly and provide products that offer fair value, and firms are required to do so under FCA rules. Fair value means that the price a consumer pays for a product or service must be reasonable compared to the overall benefits they can expect to receive. The FCA has robust powers to act against firms that fail to comply with its rules.

Consumers who do not feel they have been treated fairly may be able to refer the matter to the Financial Ombudsman Service, an independent body set up to provide arbitration in such cases.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is the independent body responsible for regulating and supervising the financial services industry, including firms providing private medical insurance.

The Government is determined that all insurers should treat consumers fairly and provide products that offer fair value, and firms are required to do so under FCA rules. Fair value means that the price a consumer pays for a product or service must be reasonable compared to the overall benefits they can expect to receive. The FCA has robust powers to act against firms that fail to comply with its rules.

Consumers who do not feel they have been treated fairly may be able to refer the matter to the Financial Ombudsman Service, an independent body set up to provide arbitration in such cases.

The Department has made no assessment on recovering National Health Service costs from private health insurance providers, when patients with private health insurance seek NHS-funded treatment which would be covered under their health insurance policy.

However, the Injury Cost Recovery scheme enables trusts to recover the cost of NHS treatment from insurers, where personal injury compensation is paid, for example after a road traffic accident. £180 million was recovered by trusts in 2023/24, for reinvestment in NHS patient services.

Insurers make commercial decisions about pricing and the terms of cover they offer based on their assessment of the relevant risks. This is usually informed by the insurer’s claims experience and other industry-wide statistics. The respective capabilities of insurers to assess risk is a key element on which they compete, and the Government does not intend to intervene in these commercial decisions, as this could damage competition in the market. This competition is important and should lead to better products and lower prices for consumers overall.

Price is an important factor on which insurers compete to win customers, and that competition should push insurers to continuously improve their assessment of risks in order to lower prices and create better products for consumers. The Government intervening in insurance markets could damage that competition and, therefore, we do not generally intervene in the commercial pricing decisions of insurers.

Private medical insurers do not provide care or treatment. However, they do purchase services from independent sector providers who are responsible for delivering healthcare. All providers of healthcare undertaking regulated activities, as defined in Schedule 1 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014, are regulated by the Care Quality Commission, and follow a set of fundamental standards of safety and quality, while the health and care regulators are responsible for regulating health and care professionals.

Regulations 9 and 12 of the 2014 regulations set out the importance of person-centred care, and safe care and treatment. These regulations have the intention of ensuring that people using a service have care or treatment that is personalised specifically for them, preventing people from receiving unsafe care and treatment, and thereby precluding avoidable harm or risk of harm.

The Government is determined that all insurers, including private medical insurers, treat consumers fairly and firms are required to do so under the Financial Conduct Authority’s rules.

The FCA requires insurers to ensure their products offer fair value, meaning the price a consumer pays for a product or service must be reasonable compared to the overall benefits they can expect to receive. The FCA has been clear that it will be monitoring firms to make sure they comply with this rule and will take action where necessary.

All providers of healthcare are regulated by the Care Quality Commission and follow a set of fundamental standards of safety and quality below which care should never fall, while the General Medical Council is responsible for regulating doctors in the United Kingdom.

Private medical insurers purchase services from independent sector providers who are responsible for delivering healthcare.

All providers of healthcare are regulated by the Care Quality Commission and follow a set of fundamental standards of safety and quality below which care should never fall, while the General Medical Council is responsible for regulating doctors in the United Kingdom.

A UK-Taiwan Healthcare Dialogue was held in July 2023, where reciprocal healthcare was discussed. We are awaiting further views from Taiwanese officials, who are consulting internally on the issue.