There has been a 1.8 per cent annual rise in the number of people deciding to arrange private health insurance cover, it has been revealed.
According to figures from the Association of British Insurers, there were 1.03 million subscribers to the protection product in 2006.
To put this into context, it is 18,000 more subscribers than the 1.01 million people who opted for a private medical insurance deal in the preceding year.
Nick Starling, director of general insurance and health at the Association of British Insurers, has explained why more people may be considering taking out the service.
"Private medical insurance offers people greater choice of treatment and other services for a wide range of medical conditions and injuries," he said.
"It also takes the pressure off the NHS."
Earlier this month, concerns were raised by a number of healthcare experts about the level of hygiene in certain NHS trusts.
The comments followed a survey by the Healthcare Commission, in which 99 of the 394 UK trusts voluntary admitted that they had failed to meet new stricter cleanliness targets.




