Private medical insurance (PMI) claim volumes rose nearly 7%, year-on-year, in the first quarter of the year, according to Healthcode.
The clearing organisation processed and validated 3.1 million invoices during the quarter.
Outpatient care accounted for most activity in Q1 and more than a million invoices in March alone. In terms of value, PMI invoices generated more than £1.5bn for healthcare providers, up by just over 11% when compared with Q1 2025.
Non-hospital sources dominate
According to the data, most of the two million-plus PMI invoices processed by Healthcode came from non-hospital sources (clinics, private practices and practitioners) and volumes were up 9.2%, year-on-year, compared with a 2.8% increase for hospitals.
The total invoice volume for outpatient care was 2.87 million over the quarter – a 7.3% increase compared with 2025. The total volume for admitted care was 294,878 which was up 3.6%, mainly driven by an increase in day cases.
Specialty radiology saw the strongest year-on-year growth of the top 10 hospital specialties in Q1, up 13% with 138,000 invoices. It stayed the second largest hospital specialty to orthopaedics, which also saw a year-on-year increase in volume of 6% to 200,000.
Physiotherapy volumes trended lower within hospitals (Q1 was down by 9%, year-on-year, to 80,000) but conversely non-hospital physiotherapy saw the largest growth with 405,000 invoices, up 14%. The other hospital specialty losing ground in Q1 was pathology/haematology (56,000) – down 16% year-on-year.
Radiology and psychotherapy were the non-hospital specialties to see a fall in volumes in Q1 (down by 26% and 8% respectively).
Wales leads the way
While there was an increase in hospital activity in all UK countries during the first three months of 2026, Wales was ahead for the second quarter in a row. Its invoice volumes were up nearly 11% year-on-year when averaged across Q1, compared with 7% for Scotland, 4.7% for Northern Ireland and 2.7% for England.
And while all English regions saw an increase in hospital activity, there was a significant difference between the East Midlands with growth of 8% when averaged across Q1 and London where it was below 1%, albeit London continued as the UK’s hub for private healthcare.
Resilient market
Richard Aris, director of strategic partnerships and external affairs at Healthcode, (pictured) said: “This was a brilliant beginning to 2026 for private healthcare and sets things up nicely for the rest of the year.
“After a slowdown in annual growth during 2025, it shows the resilience of the PMI market which continues to be the driving force in private healthcare.
“Most importantly, it ensures providers have the funding to deliver high quality diagnostics and treatment to patients in need.”
