I have health insurance
You can access our mental health support without needing to make a claim.
We're here to help.
I’m looking for some help
Our Bupa By You health insurance includes mental health cover as standard.
If you’re not sure whether your policy with us does, check your policy documents or give us a call.
To learn more about how Bupa can help you on your mental health journey find out more about our mental health support.
Call us on 0808 115 5285^ or use the My Bupa app to speak to a mental health specialist. Book video or audio appointments during the day and evenings, on weekends or bank holidays.
^Lines are open Monday to Friday 8am to 8pm. Calls may be recorded and to maintain the quality of our service we may monitor some of our calls, always respecting the confidentiality of the call.
I’m worried about a child’s mental health.
Can you help?
Our Family Mental HealthLine has advisers trained in children's mental and emotional wellbeing. So if you’re worried about a child, just give us a call.
If you have Bupa cover, the child doesn’t need to be on your policy, and you can call even if your policy doesn’t include mental health cover. Please have your membership number to hand when you call.
0345 2667 938^
The Family Mental HealthLine section of this website has articles about things that can affect children, like anxiety, depression, eating disorders, bullying and self-harm.
Need treatment? Check with us before you see a GP
If you’ve got Bupa health insurance and need help or treatment, check with Bupa before you visit a GP and we can help you get the care you need. We can help with:
Cancer concerns Muscles, bones and joints Mental health Moles and skin lesions Other symptoms
Get the My Bupa app
Download My Bupa to access your cover and get help on the go.
Search for ‘My Bupa’ in the App Store or Google Play, or scan the QR code with your phone camera to download.
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Find a Bupa recognised mental health professional near you
Browse our comprehensive, up to date list of Bupa-recognised consultants, therapists, hospitals and healthcare services. You don’t need to be a Bupa member to see them, just make your own appointment and pay independently.
I want to know more about a mental health condition
Have you been diagnosed with a condition, or suspect that you have one? We cover more mental health conditions than any other leading health insurer†. See which mental health conditions we cover.
Mental health information
Our Mental Health Hub offers free, trusted information and advice from our own experts. It’s where you can find out about different conditions and treatments.
Mental health articles
Healthy Me is our wellbeing platform. It contains lots of articles featuring the knowledge, opinions and advice of our own health experts.
There are specialist mental health charities.
You can talk to them, too.
The following helplines will talk to you in confidence.
Mind
Mind is a charity dedicated to mental health. They exist to make sure no one has to face a mental health problem alone. They’ll listen to you and offer support and advice.
0300 123 3393
Lines open 9am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, except for bank holidays
https://www.mind.org.uk/
SAMARITANS
When life is difficult, Samaritans are here – day or night, 365 days a year. Whoever you are and whatever you’re facing, they won’t judge you or tell you what to do. They’re here to listen so you don’t have to face it alone.
Call free day or night on
116 123 (UK and Republic of Ireland)
Other helpful websites
Mental Health Foundation
This charity helps people understand, protect and sustain their mental health. The ‘Your mental health’ section has lots of useful content, including podcasts about mindfulness and overcoming anxiety.
Rethink Mental Illness
Rethink offers crisis and recovery services, advocacy, online resources, support groups and much more. Each year, they help tens of thousands of people manage their mental wellbeing.
Young Minds
Young Minds is the UK’s leading charity for children’s and young people's mental health. The website is useful and you can get urgent help by texting YM to 85258, 24/7 (free from most major mobile networks). There’s no upper age limit, and there's also a parents’ helpline.
Most frequently asked questions
If your own question doesn’t appear below, just give us a call on 0113 495 0976^
Our health insurance is designed to cover you for the treatment of conditions that appear after you take out a policy with us, and that includes mental health conditions*. However, even if you have a history of mental illness, that doesn’t automatically mean we can never support you in future.
When you take out a policy, you’ll usually be asked for some medical history. We’ll ask you about any symptoms, treatment or advice you’ve had in the past, including your mental health and wellbeing. How recent that was will affect what we can cover you for in future. Then we’ll be able to let you know if there's anything we wouldn't be able to offer you cover for - if it's been pre-existing. This is a wide-ranging area, so even if you’ve struggled in the past with similar but unrelated symptoms, we’d still look to see if we can support you.
For example, if you’ve had PTSD before, we could still cover you for future unrelated episodes of stress. And if you’ve had post-natal depression, we could still cover you for unrelated episodes of depression. We may be able to review any such exclusion whenever you renew your policy, so do ask us for a review. We can only consider covering you for previously excluded conditions for which you’ve had no symptoms, treatment or advice for at least 12 months**.
Every decision we make is based on your own personal circumstances, so do call us to discuss your options on 0808 271 4349^. We may record or monitor our calls.
* Please check your policy documents to see if you have mental health cover.
** The period of time will depend on the condition.
The Mental health conditions we support page details the most common mental health conditions we help our members with. We don’t cover dementia and learning, behavioural and developmental conditions.
If you decide to switch to Bupa you’ll have access to our mental health cover as standard. However, any pre-existing conditions may not be covered. To understand more about pre-existing conditions at Bupa, please call us on 0808 271 4707^.
Yes. Although we will support the long-term treatment of new chronic conditions such as depression and anxiety, we have limits on our cover. We’ll only cover one addiction treatment programme per member and there are limitations on inpatient stays per annum (for existing members this can be 28 days, 45 days or 90 days depending on the policy you have)
It’s also important to consider your outpatient benefit limits when you buy a policy, to ensure you have enough benefit to pay for any required therapies you might need – for example, a consultant may recommend you need 20 sessions of face-to-face CBT therapy, which can cost £50 per session. If you chose a £500 outpatient benefit limit, this would not cover the cost of all the treatments you might need.
Please call us on 0808 271 4707^ to find out more. Or you can read the full terms and conditions of our Bupa By You Policy Guide (PDF, 0.5MB).
You could switch to our Bupa By You product but we’d need to chat to you about the health insurance cover you currently have. Please call us on 0808 271 4707^ to discuss your options.
If you have mental health cover you should be able to see it on your membership certificate. If you’re still unsure, please call us on 0808 271 4707^.
Even if you don’t have access to mental health cover, there are still many ways we can support you with mental health issues, without the need to claim.
1. You can speak to our mental health support team, who can put you through to a Bupa mental health nurse so you can speak about issues that are affecting you or a family member. They’ll be able to give you advice.
2. You can use our directory of mental health specialists to find private specialists.
3. You can call our Family Mental HealthLine on 0345 266 7938^ and talk to us about any concerns you are having about your child’s emotional wellbeing (even if the child isn’t covered on your insurance). The Family Mental HealthLine is available Monday to Friday from 8am to 6pm.
This will depend upon the circumstances in which you left your group scheme, and any pre-existing conditions that we might continue to exclude. Please call us on 0808 296 3749^ to find out more.
Yes - if you take out a new personal policy assuming the condition and treatment are eligible. However if you have pre-existing conditions these may be excluded. Please call us on 0808 296 3749^ to find out more.
Yes, if you take out a Bupa By You health insurance policy you’ll be able to benefit from the increased cover for mental health. Your claims will still be subject to other eligibility and dependant on the outcome of medical underwriting questions you’re asked when you join.
^Lines are open Monday to Friday 8am to 8pm. Calls may be recorded and to maintain the quality of our service we may monitor some of our calls, always respecting the confidentiality of the call.
†As of September 2024, this comparison to other products in the market is based on Bupa’s and Defaqto’s interpretation of the differences between Bupa’s Bupa By You, SME Select and Corporate Select health insurance and other health insurance products offering mental health cover. The comparison excludes any special offers or promotions which may temporarily alter the cover offered. Cover comparison information is for personal use and guidance only and does not constitute any contractual representation, warranty or obligation by either Bupa or Defaqto about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability of the comparison. Neither party accepts any liability for errors, omissions, direct or consequential loss in relation to this comparison.
See PDF How we compare: Individuals (PDF 1MB)
The My Bupa App is provided by Bupa Insurance Services Limited which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Registered in England and Wales at 1 Angel Court, London, EC2R 7HJ. Its company number is 3829851. VAT Registration Number: 239731641.
Bupa health insurance is provided by Bupa Insurance Limited. Registered in England and Wales with registration number 3956433. Bupa Insurance Limited is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority.
Arranged and administered by Bupa Insurance Services Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered in England and Wales with registration number 3829851. Registered office: 1 Angel Court, London, EC2R 7HJ.
