In short
Overview
Executive health checks are priced by how many tests they contain. Since several of those tests have no evidence of benefit, price and value come apart quickly.
Direct Answer
What you should pay for: consultation time, a calculated cardiovascular risk, age appropriate screening, and the follow up on anything abnormal.
What inflates the price without improving outcomes: whole body imaging, multi cancer blood tests, biological age panels, and broad hormone or micronutrient screens.
The finding that should frame the whole decision: general health checks did not reduce mortality in a meta analysis of 14 randomised trials covering over 180,000 people.
Who This Applies To
- Anyone comparing packages where the price ranges by a factor of five
- Companies buying checks for a team and wanting to know what is worth funding
- Anyone offered a premium tier and unsure what the upgrade buys
Option Comparison / Decision Criteria
Enough consultation time for a proper history, since that determines which tests are worth doing
Blood pressure measured properly and confirmed outside the clinic before any diagnosis
Lipids, glucose or HbA1c, kidney and liver function, feeding a validated risk calculator
Age appropriate cancer screening arranged, with the harms stated
An alcohol screen, a mood screen and a vaccination review
Why an In-Person Physician Review Matters
The cost nobody quotes Following up a false positive.
That is imaging, sometimes a procedure, and months of uncertainty. In one study, procedures were performed on 30 per cent of people with a false positive multi cancer result, and median time to resolution was 162 days. A quote for a package rarely includes what happens next. Why timing matters for benefit and harm Harm from screening arrives immediately. Benefit arrives years later. For colorectal and breast screening you need to live 10 years to have a 1 in 1000 chance of your life being extended, and 16 years for 2 in 1000. An overdiagnosed cancer, by contrast, is treated within weeks. The frequency question Without chronic conditions, about every three years under 50 and yearly from 50. Cardiovascular risk every three to five years from 20, or yearly at borderline risk and above. An annual package sold to a 38 year old with no conditions is charging for an interval that has no evidence behind it. Where the free returns are Activity added 1.3 to 3.7 years of life expectancy at 50 in the Framingham data. Stopping smoking has the strongest behaviour change evidence in medicine. Neither appears on an invoice.
Frequently Asked Questions
Almost always because it contains more imaging and more panels. Several of those, including whole body scans and multi cancer blood tests, have no evidence of improving outcomes, so the price reflects volume rather than benefit.
Usually not. The upgrade tends to buy more findings rather than better health, and each false positive brings further testing with its own cost and risk.
More consultation time than test time. The history determines which tests are worth doing, so a check that is mostly machines and minimal conversation has the sequence backwards.
For staff under 50 with no chronic conditions, about every three years is the reasonable interval. Annual checks for that group are charging for a frequency that has no evidence behind it.
Evidence
Where this information comes from
Every figure on this page is taken from the sources below. All of them are free to read, so you can check them yourself.
- Cardiovascular diseases
- Cardiovascular disease: risk assessment and reduction
- Hypertension in adults: diagnosis and management
This page is general medical information and does not replace a personal consultation. Trial results are averages across large groups, not a prediction for any one person.