In the past 6 months, a lot has been going haywire all over the globe. The announcement on March 21, by our respected Prime Minister would be so significant, no one hadn't even dreamt of. On the very day, it was a public or the janta curfew of only 21 days which eventually got prolonged further and further and eventually we all were sitting inside our homes locked up, the lockdown, which is the word of the year as stated by the Oxford and Collins dictionary. But now reflecting upon the past many months, a lot of things changed, new normal and paradigm devloped, new evolution and disruptions emerged, in eventually every sector (Primary, Secondary and Tertiary). I belong to the insurance industry, general insurance, per se, so coming directly to the point as to what all changes did we see in the industry. Well, at first, it began from the Business Interruption lawsuits being filed in California, United States and how the vendors be small or medium sized got affected, then the wildfires erupted, the losses fathomed to a huge amount negatively impacting the balance sheet of the insurers. Apart from all the negative connotations, the awareness of the insurance in the general public was seen and the first impact was very evident in the Google search bar, where when you typed keywords such as Health the next followed words were care, Costs, care industry, etc. The paradigm is evident and now the second word is Insurance. Yes, the Health insurance. It was the first time that for the first quarter the growth and the Gross Premium Underwritten was a notch higher than the usual Motor insurance. This news item and the reports were very much positive considering the change in shift from earlier SOP, where motor contributed a major chunk of GWP. Currently, the Motor GWP underwritten stands at approximately ₹65000 crores and holds the forte for the GI business.
It's a different thing altogether when in a country like India, insurance is still a push product rather than a pull product. Recently, the regulatory body for Insurance had to intervene, in clarifying the stand on the rising health insurance premiums, quoting that the media reports are not accurate. But the Covid bills as stated by the hospitals, are an evidence in self which indicates the high volumes of rising OOP (Out of Pocket) expenditures for the retail customers. And also the latest figures show a healthy rise in both the group and retail products for Health Insurance business in India. But still the lack of clarity when the rates were subsidized among the hospitals and the insurance body is a major concern. Why there is different of opinions on the package rates being provided and the room rent and other associated medical expenses, the cost of PPE kits, is a major factor that's still unaccounted for. The largest healthinsurance scheme in the country shows a very low volume of patients enrolled for covid19 treatment alongside the ongoing the favouritism part on behalf of common people, as to which hospitals they prefer, the public and the government run institutions, or the private sector ones. The statistics show the higher percentage in support of the latter one. There are still very less primary healthcare and wellness centers as promised in the PMJAY scheme or the Ayushman Bharat. The rising medical inflation is another factor for the higher OOP expenses. Eventually when we see the other side , it's the customer or the final consumer that is bearing the brunt. Now with the inclusion of robotic surgeries and modern treatment methods, in line with the Standardization of General exclusions and various other amendments by the regulatory authority is bound to increase the premium and particularly for those who are in the age bracket of 55-65 (years)and above. Now when they're getting aware, the rising premium may prove to be a dent in the way of how the things will eventually shape up for Health Insurance business in India.
Please share your thoughts and views !!