Healthcare in Scotland

Its is exceptionally good but not efficient. There is a lot of waste in the system. Too many levels of management. The government keeps injecting money in it and costs billions to keep it going. This is the main issue presently for the election in May. The parties are promising More funding to lure voters. It can be more efficient if managed properly. The hierarchy within the NHS would not want this.
It is funded by national insurance and taxes. National insurance is paid by everybody in employment.
Everybody has access to health care. You must be registered to a general practice to get all the benefits. Access to a doctor is through an appointment system. Any serious matter is referred to a specialist. You might have to wait for weeks or months to see a specialist depending on the seriousness of the illness.
In the private sector, you subscribe to a particular health care company and get immediate treatment by specialist. This can be quite costly. Its similar to an insurance.
Unless you are running a big profitable business, it would not be advisable. The only difference is u might have to wait a little bit longer.
Under the present system in scotland, all medications are free for everybody.
Hope this assist you.

I would agree with the first reply. Not very efficient. Endless bureaucratic processes. Not bad especially as it's free but wouldn't say it's always the most effective treatment as it is a run on a cost effective basis. Delays cause big problems and reliance on family to look after the sick/recovering is a big assumption and saving of costs by the NHS. If you have connections you get better service as well tho no one would admit as much. Whether you would get better service in private sector I don't know, maybe quicker and maybe a few more treatment options. The NHS will only fund the cheapest treatment that is seen to be effective for most people but will generally not consider individual needs unless all other cheaper options have failed. And that takes time. One general problem I've noticed compared to other countries is that the general public seem to not take much responsibility for their own health as they're not paying for treatment when they're sick but this is complicated by poverty/socio economic status and local attitudes, environment and facilities available. Most of the staff are quite good but very overworked, used to be very slow system but now bit better but still full of endless bureaucractic hoops for people to jump thru. If you're generally healthy I wouldn't bother with private health insurance tho, although some employers provide cover.

I would say it depends from where you relocate to Scotland. I came from Germany and the health care system there is way better than in Scotland but people pay for it separately (deducted from your gross salary). The advantage: They can choose their GP, they can even make an appointment with a specialist themselves. Waiting times are much shorter than in the UK. Children have a tight check-up net up to the age of 8 which I find rather important. The downside is, if you are healthy and look after yourself, you still pay a lot of money.
Getting an appointment at the GP in Scotland is easy and quick but if they need to look further into your issue, it can take a while. Also it seemed to me that the GPs have a very general knowledge but when it comes to something more specific, they could not help me. I also have been asked more than once to privately pay for physiotherapy etc. as the waiting time is 3 months!
The good news: Healthcare in the UK is free. This includes check-ups and prescriptions. The specialists are really good.
Like melfrommel said, if you have generally a good health, you do not need private cover.

Hi I am confused with the statement Healthcare is free. If we are there on a visiting visa, it surely can't be free for us can it? Does it kick in when you are permanent?