But then you are paying for both private and public healthcare, so it isn’t really competition.

Given the context in this thread is diversity rather than price, that does not matter.

In Australia at least you can claim a tax rebate if you have private health insurance. I imagine the UK would have a similar system.

The problem I see with that, is that if my private insurance is with my employer, I am making no public contribution while I am healthy but earning money.

Then while I am on pension I am back on the public system, I am making no contribution but using it most.

That would basically be a system designed to bancrupt the public but lucrative for private insurers.

In the UK, private insurance usually requires you to use the public health system as a first stage, and only fall back to the private one for things not covered by the NHS. So you don't get a tax rebate because you are still relying on the public system.

> In the UK, private insurance usually requires you to use the public health system as a first stage, and only fall back to the private one for things not covered by the NHS.

I don't think it is for things "not covered by the NHS". It depends on your level of coverage but typically you would go to the NHS first and then invoke your private coverage when you have a diagnosis in order the eg skip the queue.

When a relative had a heart attack, he was put on a waiting list for a heart bypass - 1 year. When he invoked insurance, he got seen within a month - by the same doctor and in the same facility as it would have been on NHS.

In a lot of instances the private health care system is just paying the public one for advantageous access to services.

Even in cases where you're using a private GP service and theoretically not costing the NHS anything at all; there's no tax rebate.

To be clear though, I'm fine with this - the NHS is for everyone and it should be funded for everyone.

Having private medical insurance does not affect your liability to pay NI like everyone else.

In fact it increases your tax costs, because private insurance provided by e.g. an employer is treated as a BIK.