VHI subscribers will be able to claim for check-ups and other GP services within nine months, the health insurance body has said. The additional cover, however, will not be free of charge.
The State board, which has 1.5 million customers, said it had begun discussions with the Irish College of General Practitioners and the Irish Medical Organisation regarding the launch of "a comprehensive primary care cover scheme".
Meetings will take place between the three organisations on providing GP cover by April, and launching new primary-care cover by September.
BUPA Ireland has begun discussions with the professional bodies following the introduction last April of a pilot GP project.
The VHI's medical director, Dr Bernadette Carr, said the White Paper on Private Health Insurance, published in September, paved the way for such a move, for which there has been a "huge demand. It has been the number one issue with our customers for many years.
"There is a recognition that healthcare needs to move out of the hospital and into the community. People want care provided at the closest point of contact and we are aiming to support that by introducing a scheme that covers everything including check-ups and preventative healthcare."
She said the company was examining whether to offer the extra cover as a distinct product or add it to existing policies at a charge. Either way, she said, it would not be free.
"If you do want a high-quality product there are costs and people will have to make up their minds whether to pay for it," she said.
Dr Liam Lynch, chairman of the IMO's GPs committee, said it welcomed the move "from health insurance geared towards catastrophic occasions to disease and illness prevention".
While he welcomed the start of negotiations with both VHI and BUPA Ireland, he warned "it will take some time before a quality product can be finalised". Such a policy would have to cover a broad range of areas from heath screening to lifestyle advice.
Dr Carr said there were also two legal hurdles to be jumped: changes to health insurance regulations and the amendment of the VHI Act, both due to take place before the summer.
