ChatterBank4 mins ago
Benefits
7 Answers
My self employed partner is going into hospital for an operation which he is going to have to have privately as we cannot get our NHS to do it for him. We live in NI but are going to have to travel to the mainland for the operation, which is going to cost £20k and he will not be able to go back to work for about 10 months to a year.
We will be out of pocket for the operation, a years income from him, plus travel for both of us and accommodation for myself during the time he will be in hospital as I want to be with him and also to help him travel home (he could be in hospital up to a month) plus income lost from myself taking the time off to look after him after the operation.
We've also been told (unofficially so don't know if it's true) that the NHS will not help us out with any aftercare, physio etc that he may need, as we've gone private for the operation.
Apart from Incapacity Benefit, is there any other financial help available to us? I'm not just on the scrounge but the operation and loss of a years income is going to be very hard on us and we've never claimed any benefits before so not sure what we would be entitled to
We will be out of pocket for the operation, a years income from him, plus travel for both of us and accommodation for myself during the time he will be in hospital as I want to be with him and also to help him travel home (he could be in hospital up to a month) plus income lost from myself taking the time off to look after him after the operation.
We've also been told (unofficially so don't know if it's true) that the NHS will not help us out with any aftercare, physio etc that he may need, as we've gone private for the operation.
Apart from Incapacity Benefit, is there any other financial help available to us? I'm not just on the scrounge but the operation and loss of a years income is going to be very hard on us and we've never claimed any benefits before so not sure what we would be entitled to
Answers
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Please give us some more information:~
1.What is the operation that the NHS in NI will not perform?
2.Just how is it going to cost £20K !?and prevent him working for 10 months/1 year?
3. Yes,the NHS have the right to refuse follow up treatment for a private operation.
I am somewhat surprised that any NHS will not perform an operation.
Do you mean the wait is too long?
As I say without more details we can't give you a correct answer.
However,going by what you are saying in your question,there may be some benefits available,but as your partner is self employed this cuts them down a lot.
You would be best to check with your local DWP office to see what he/you are entitled to.
1.What is the operation that the NHS in NI will not perform?
2.Just how is it going to cost £20K !?and prevent him working for 10 months/1 year?
3. Yes,the NHS have the right to refuse follow up treatment for a private operation.
I am somewhat surprised that any NHS will not perform an operation.
Do you mean the wait is too long?
As I say without more details we can't give you a correct answer.
However,going by what you are saying in your question,there may be some benefits available,but as your partner is self employed this cuts them down a lot.
You would be best to check with your local DWP office to see what he/you are entitled to.
You need to seek professional advice here. Sometimes a self-employed person can claim invalidity benefit - e.g., after a heart attack, but it'd depend on the operation carried out.
Most self-employed people'd pay into a private medical care package, and after-care'd be paid for by "top up" premiums.
If, however, your partner'd been seeing a NHS doctor about his problem before the op, and if the procedure's carried out in an NHS hospital, then I believe you'd be entitled to free after-care, but if this is the case, then I can't understand why this particular op hasn't been arranged on the NHS anyway - unless your partner's been told that he'll have quite a long wait? If it's urgent, then a NHS hospital'd have him in fairly quickly anyway.
If the op's for aesthetic (cosmetic) reasons, then I'd imagine that your partner'll have to pay for the after-care himself, as it was his choice to go privately.
Again, you need to get professional advice. I doubt you'd be able to get any other benefits to tide you over, as it could be argued that your partner should've taken out a personal insurance which'd pay him a weekly/monthly rate in the event of him being unable to work for a while.
When a person pays for private medical treatment out of their own pocket, they have to take into consideration the costs of being unable to work during the recuperation period, but as aforesaid, if the operation's urgent, I can't see why this isn't being done on the NHS. It's exactly the same procedure, and often the job's done by NHS surgeons who're earning a bit more by taking on private patients.
If it's a case of jumping the queue to avoid waiting in discomfort, then I think most people'd do it if they could, but not if they couldn't afford to live afterwards, and as I say, in an emergency, your partner'd be sent for treatment on the NHS.
Most self-employed people'd pay into a private medical care package, and after-care'd be paid for by "top up" premiums.
If, however, your partner'd been seeing a NHS doctor about his problem before the op, and if the procedure's carried out in an NHS hospital, then I believe you'd be entitled to free after-care, but if this is the case, then I can't understand why this particular op hasn't been arranged on the NHS anyway - unless your partner's been told that he'll have quite a long wait? If it's urgent, then a NHS hospital'd have him in fairly quickly anyway.
If the op's for aesthetic (cosmetic) reasons, then I'd imagine that your partner'll have to pay for the after-care himself, as it was his choice to go privately.
Again, you need to get professional advice. I doubt you'd be able to get any other benefits to tide you over, as it could be argued that your partner should've taken out a personal insurance which'd pay him a weekly/monthly rate in the event of him being unable to work for a while.
When a person pays for private medical treatment out of their own pocket, they have to take into consideration the costs of being unable to work during the recuperation period, but as aforesaid, if the operation's urgent, I can't see why this isn't being done on the NHS. It's exactly the same procedure, and often the job's done by NHS surgeons who're earning a bit more by taking on private patients.
If it's a case of jumping the queue to avoid waiting in discomfort, then I think most people'd do it if they could, but not if they couldn't afford to live afterwards, and as I say, in an emergency, your partner'd be sent for treatment on the NHS.
No it's not for cosmetic reasons it is a spinal fusion with bone graft and they are also doing something else with the tendons to try and stop the pain (not sure what exactly as I wasn't at the consultation)
Basically after 10 years of severe pain and visits to the dr (where he was told everything from "just live with it" to "growing pains" he paid to go to a specialist in NI who performed an discectomy (rushed it through on NHS as it was classed as urgent after he saw the scans). This did not work and after a further three years of visits to the specialist and another one in NI, where they were told nothing could be done, we decided to try someone else so went privately to a specialist in London.
He was then told that there were major problems which the NI specialists had missed completely and an operation is the only way to solve the problem.
We have tried to get him private medical insurance, but with a history of back pain and operations, they won't even offer the insurance, (and by that I don't mean that they charge high premiums, they will not touch him at all)
Basically after 10 years of severe pain and visits to the dr (where he was told everything from "just live with it" to "growing pains" he paid to go to a specialist in NI who performed an discectomy (rushed it through on NHS as it was classed as urgent after he saw the scans). This did not work and after a further three years of visits to the specialist and another one in NI, where they were told nothing could be done, we decided to try someone else so went privately to a specialist in London.
He was then told that there were major problems which the NI specialists had missed completely and an operation is the only way to solve the problem.
We have tried to get him private medical insurance, but with a history of back pain and operations, they won't even offer the insurance, (and by that I don't mean that they charge high premiums, they will not touch him at all)
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