I have a friend who has depression. He is covered by his company's health insurance scheme. However he is thinking of retiring and wants to purchase private health insurance now. What are his options?

He should see if he can port his company's insurance. There'll be loading, but the corporate agreements usually have a cap as to how much loading they can impose. So then it just becomes a cost vs coverage comparison

If a person is still undergoing treatment for depression, I'm sorry to say that it is highly likely your friend will be rejected by most if not all insurers at the moment. Cases of depression are too risky for insurers to underwrite, and hence will not be given much chance at all. This may include those still undergoing consultations, and taking medication etc.

From experience, only if a person has officially recovered from the condition will the insurer been more keen to underwrite, and before a certain number of years after recovery, the insured will most likely have exclusion on all treatments or surgery related to any mental conditions for the time being. An appeal to remove exclusion can only be done after a number of years, and is subject to additional underwriting as well.

Not all hope is lost of course, as your friend can still try to apply for moratorium underwriting for health insurance. This is only offered by Aviva at the moment, but is an option to consider.

This advice is from experience, and may not fully represent the underwriting requirements of each insurer. If unsure, always check with a financial adviser from the insurers you would like to apply to.