Health Specialist & Diagnostic Testing Customer guide SPECIALIST & DIAGNOSTIC TESTING WITH BEST DOCTORS TotalCareMax Life. Take charge. sovereign.co.nz
SPECIALIST CARE Getting specialist treatment through the public health system may take longer than you think. With Specialist and Diagnostic testing, you don t need to wait. What is Specialist & Diagnostic testing? This benefit is available as an add-on to any of Sovereign s TotalCareMax range of personal insurance products. It will give you the control and ability to select the best specialist available and get the essential treatment you need. What does it offer me? Type of cover: Specialist and Diagnostic Testing covers specialist consultations and diagnostic procedures such as oncologist and cardiologist consultations, and MRI and CT scans up to $5,000 per life assured, per policy year. Best Doctors : You also have access to Best Doctors*, which provides additional advice on critical, chronic and degenerative conditions. Eligible ages: From 16 years onwards (individual consideration from age 70). Excess option: You can select an excess of $300 for your Specialist and Diagnostic Testing benefit to make your premiums more affordable. The excess applies once per life assured, per policy year. * Best Doctors is independent of Sovereign Assurance Company Limited ( Sovereign ). Sovereign does not guarantee the quality of any advice provided through the Best Doctors service or the ongoing availability of the service. Sovereign may withdraw access to the service or change the terms and conditions on which access to the service is made available at any time. Information about Best Doctors was sourced from Best Doctors and is not guaranteed by Sovereign to be accurate or complete. None of Sovereign, its related companies, their directors, officers nor employees accept any liability whatsoever for any loss or damage arising out of use of the Best Doctors service, or out of the use of or reliance on the information provided in this document. Best Doctors terms and conditions and eligibility criteria apply. Sovereign is not responsible for any cost associated with becoming eligible to use, or use of, the Best Doctors service (including without limitation the cost of any medical consultations or treatment, travel, lodging, telephone calls, faxes, or email) except as set out in a Sovereign policy contract. Best Doctors, FindBestCare, and the star-in-cross logo are trademarks of Best Doctors Inc., in the United States of America and in other countries and are used under licence.
ABOUT TOTALCAREMAX SPECIALIST AND DIAGNOSTIC TESTING Specialist and Diagnostic Testing helps you access the best specialist care, where and when it suits you. What are the benefits? Specialist consultations Including Cardiac surgeons Cardiologists Ear, nose and throat specialists Gastroenterologists General surgeons Gynaecologists Neurosurgeons Oncologists Orthopaedic surgeons Urologists Cover is not provided for Obstetricians, Psychiatrists or Psychologists. Diagnostic tests Including but not limited to Allergy testing Audiology Audiometric tests CT scans Colonoscopy* Cystoscopy Electroencephalography (EEG) Electromyography (EMG) Exercise ECG Gastroscopy Holter monitoring Laboratory tests Mammography* MRI scans Myelogram Ultrasound Urodynamic assessments X-rays * Cover is not provided for routine screening or periodic testing.
BEST DOCTORS Providing answers when you need them most. Best Doctor s worldwide network offers you and your immediate family 1, access to over 53,000 leading medical specialists. Whether you need a second opinion on your diagnosis or treatment, or have a simple medical question about a current health concern, a network of peer nominated experts from New Zealand and around the world are there to help. 1 Immediate family is defined as; the eligible life assured s partner (spouse, civil or de facto) and any birth child or child under legal guardianship of the life assured and/or the life assured s partner. How Best Doctors works 1 Access an Expert The Access an Expert service gives you easy access to a network of the world s best medical minds by remotely connecting you to them to seek advice and guidance on any medical condition. A leading global expert will provide a recommendation giving you the confidence, clarity and certainty that you have the correct diagnosis and are on the right treatment path. > Firstly, you ll be connected with a New Zealand-based GP who will ask questions about your medical condition and what some of your concerns or questions are. > If you just have a number of questions about your condition then Best Doctors will arrange for those to be answered by a leading global expert and you ll receive a written report within a week. > If you d like a full second opinion on your diagnosis and treatment plan, then Best Doctors will arrange for the collection of your medical records. If necessary, they ll then retest your pathology at a leading pathological centre. > A leading expert or multiple experts - depending on the complexity of the case - are selected to analyse your diagnosis and treatment plan and make recommendations. > These details are summarised in a written report and sent to you within 15-20 days of your medical records being received. You are then encouraged to share the report with your treating doctor. If the second opinion suggests an overseas treatment option and you and your treating doctors decide to pursue this treatment, FindBestCare can assist with the co-ordination of the treatment, including hospital admittance, booking a surgeon, flights, accommodation and a translator, at cost to the patient. 2 Find an Expert When a face to face consultation is what you need, it s imperative to sit down with a doctor you can trust and rely on. The Find an Expert service gives the ability to identify peer nominated experts across a broad range of specialities in your nearest metropolitan area. If you want a first opinion, a face to face second opinion or to find a trusted surgeon, Find an Expert can help. 3 DocOnline If you need answers to simple medical questions or if you are unsure of a diagnosis, DocOnline can give you unlimited access to a panel of carefully selected local GPs. > You submit your medical questions to an experienced New Zealand based Best Doctors GP via the Best Doctors member portal. > A GP answers your questions and sends the response along with supporting information to you within 48 hours. Best Doctors multimedia medical library With Best Doctors, you also have unlimited access to a comprehensive online library of medical information, to help you find the answers you need. This includes information on hundreds of medical conditions, over 300 educational videos and a helpful blog.
Did you know? by670 The Association of Salaried Medical Specialists (ASMS) has calculated that New Zealand public hospitals are on track to be short full-time equivalent senior doctors by 2021 1 A significant proportion of the SPECIALIST WORKFORCE in New Zealand is approaching retirement age, while a growing desire for a better work-life balance in general, but particularly among the younger generations of doctors, is adding to current workforce pressures 2 Increasing international DEMAND FOR SPECIALISTS, and New Zealand s high and increasing dependence on international medical graduates, is likely to lead to medical emigration to a broader range of countries in future 2 Source 1 ASMS August 2014 2 ASMS September 2014
WHY SOVEREIGN? After taking care of New Zealanders for the past 25 years, Sovereign is turning insurance on its head by dedicating ourselves to helping you take charge of your health. From now on we ll be doing our bit to help you keep healthy, and encouraging you to do yours. Sovereign has an A.M. Best financial strength rating of A+ (Superior)*. As a values-based company, we believe in putting people first. That means not only our customers but also our staff and the wider community. * Given by A.M. Best Inc., an approved insurance rating agency. A copy of the scale, of which this rating forms part, is available from Sovereign. 0800 500 108 sovereign.co.nz Sovereign House 74 Taharoto Road, Takapuna, Auckland 0622 Private Bag Sovereign, Victoria Street West, Auckland 1142 Telephone: +64 9 487 9000 Fax +64 9 487 8003 The availability of insurance cover is subject to your application being approved. All applications are subject to individual consideration. Special conditions, exclusions and premium loadings may apply. This insurance is underwritten by Sovereign Assurance Company Limited ( Sovereign ). For full details of the products and benefits offered by Sovereign, please refer to the policy document(s) which are available from Sovereign. Sovereign, the policy insurer, is part of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia Group and is a related company of ASB Bank Limited and its subsidiaries ( the Banking Group ). None of the Banking Group, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, any of their directors, or any other person, guarantees Sovereign or its subsidiaries, or any of the products issued by Sovereign or its subsidiaries. The information contained in this publication is general in nature and is not intended as advice. It may not be relevant to individual circumstances and before making any insurance decision, you should consult a professional Adviser. Copies of our disclosure statements are available on request, free of charge. 00800 0217