Pvt hospitals get together insurance firm today

Leading corporate hospitals, which are out of the preferred provider network (PPN) of public sector health insurance firms, will offer standardized treatment packages for nearly 250 procedures to see their PPN status restored soon.
The representatives of hospital chains such as Apollo, Fortis and Max are expected to meet their health insurance counterparts with the new proposals tomorrow.
The move comes after a recent meeting of the heads of the hospitals and the four state-run insurance firms — New India Assurance, United India Insurance, National Insurance and Oriental Insurance — decided to form separate working groups to sort out the pricing issues the insurance firms had with these hospitals.
The groups were expected to sort out a compromise formula within 10 to 30 working days.
The insurance firms had stopped offering cashless services to their policy holders approaching the hospitals that are not in their PPN list as they felt that such hospitals were ‘over charging’ their insured patients.
The hospitals, grouped under industry chambers such as CII and Ficci, had argued that isolated incidents should not be the basis for excluding corporate hospitals from PPN.
“The insurance companies had never raised such an issue before. Now that they have expressed their concerns, we will try to address their problems. Tomorrow’s meeting will not be the final one, but we expect most of the current issues to be solved soon,” a healthcare industry executive, who is part of the negotiations, said today.
The high claim ratio — health insurance claim ratio stood at 130 per cent during 2009-10 — was the main reason for the insurance firms to have a strict scrutiny of the rates being charged by the hospitals for various procedures.

Hospital corpse to clarify position on cashless medical insurance

The Association of Hospitals, which represents most private hospitals in the city, will on Wednesday simplify its stand on the issue of cashless medical insurance. Many insurance holders had been left in the pitch as public sector insurance companies had determined to limit cashless mediclaim policies to only those hospitals that characteristic in the favorite Provider Network list drawn up by them.
This covered only 81 hospitals in Mumbai.
The public sector companies had done this saying the hospitals were billing patients advanced if they came under mediclaim.
The companies want hospitals to stay to a set of standard rates for surgeries and medicines.
“Hospitals are being asked to conduct bypass surgeries for Rs 1.8 lakh, which is not likely in a city like Mumbai,” said General Vijay Krishna, chief executive officer (CEO) of Breach Candy Hospital, who is a member of the association.
“The insurance companies are also saying they will buy equipment and medicines straight and give to them hospitals,” he added.
“This is just not practical. If we need some equipment immediately, will we have to wait till it is sent to us.”
“The insurance companies should have held a discussion with us before making such decisions. We have not been given a consideration,” he added.

Reliance Life Insurance bets large on health cover up

Anil Ambani-promoted Reliance Life Insurance is cheerful on the growing health insurance market and expects to sell over a million policies this financial.
“There is a huge growth prospective in the health insurance section in India. We plan to valve the highly under-penetrated market to be among the top 3 insurers by 2012 and sell over one million policies this year,” president and executive director Malay Ghosh told The Telegraph.
At present, Reliance Life has a smallest presence in the section, which is subject by general insurance firms such as Bajaj Allianz, ICICI Lombard and Tata AIG, among private players.
According to a report by global research firm RNCOS, the health insurance market premium is projected to produce at a compounded annual rate of over 25(%) per cent between 2009-10 and 2013-14. Premium collections touched $1.31 billion in 2008-09, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) said in its yearly report of 2008-09.
Reliance Life, which crossed the 60-lakh blot in total policy sales last month, plans to support its portfolio with innovative products that comprise total reimbursable health expenses, individual and family floater on equally group and individual product platforms, and long-term care.
On the recent withdrawal of cashless flair by many insurers, the company said it would seek positive clarifications from the IRDA before taking any action.
Industry experts said although the health insurance market extended quickly in the past couple of years, it remained largely under-penetrated. “Some of the critical shortcomings include low awareness, non-coverage of out-patient care and obtainable diseases, inefficient cost management, product reach in rural areas and weak retail sharing model,” stated the RNCOS report.
“Apart from a strong product line, quality customer service, contact and training are what create a highly differentiated product,” Ghosh said.
The company aims to break even by the end of this financial.

Stopping cashless medical insurance is break of agreement

It is unfortunate that even public-sector Insurance Companies have joined private-sector ones in their cold attitude towards their individual customers when large number of chief hospitals were de-listed by these public-sector Insurance companies for extending cashless reimbursement for availing medical facilities through mediclaim policies. It is a break of agreement when the facility was discontinued uninformed to policy-holders unexpectedly from 01.07.2010.

However Insurance companies for prospect can issue two types of mediclaim policies, with cashless policies valid at all hospitals as before, at some higher premium than normal policies without cashless ability during treatment. But any such system should be for new policies only. It is pointless to break the contract with policy-holders by midway termination of any earlier prevailing facility including cashless mediclaim at different hospitals.

Union government should combine all public-sector Insurance companies in one united company to save largely on advertisements and overheads.

Future Generali India to start on health plus term life insurance plan

Following Insurance Regulatory Development Authority's move to allow insurance companies to offer “Health plus Life” products, Future Generali India Life Insurance, the insurance joint business enterprise between Future Group and Generali of Italy, is planning to launch a combo plan in the next 2 months.
“We are looking to launch a health plus term life insurance product, perhaps in the next 2 months. I see this type of product to progressively build over the next 3 to 5 years. It can lead to some other combinations, and set the ball systematic for more complex products,” said Deepak Sood, chief executive officer, Future Generali Life Insurance, on the sidelines of a press meet here today.
In December, the regulator permitted companies to offer “Health plus Life Combo Product” — a policy that will offer life cover along with health insurance. For this, life and non-life insurance companies need to enter into agreements to offer the health-cum-life cover.
At present, about 70(%) per cent of the company's businesses approach from unit linked products. This year, the company is hoping to achieve a new business premium of Rs 1,200 crore, from Rs 486 crore previous years.
The company on Monday launched Future Generali NAV Assure, a unit linked insurance plan, a NAV guarantee unit-linked Insurance plan.

Health insurance, Life mooted for school teachers

The government is planning life and health insurance cover and a group housing scheme at a subsidized price for 60 lakh primary and secondary school teachers.
While the two insurance schemes will need financial contribution by the Centre, the States and the teachers, the group housing scheme will be sprint at the Central level but will not require financial contribution from the Centre or the States, Union Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal said on Friday. He was addressing a gathering of the National Foundation for Teachers Welfare here.
Thanks to their huge range, the health and life insurance schemes would premium-wise cost much less than individual schemes or even schemes run at the State level. The economics of scale would drive individual premiums down. The life insurance cover would guarantee a minimum of about Rs. 5 lakh on retirement and Rs. 2 lakh on death during service. The health cover, limited to hospitalization of the teacher, the spouse, two children and parents, was being worked on two options — either on a maximum cover of Rs. 1.25 lakh which would signify a lesser premium or a cover of Rs. 3 lakh this would mean a higher premium.
The group housing scheme is being envisaged to be Centrally-administered through a portal, with construction done by the National Building Construction Corporation (NBCC), ground bought at institutional rates and group housing societies formed by teachers. Thus, while there will be no cost to the government, the teachers will get excellence housing at lesser rates without much struggle or fear of being cheated.
To begin with, the Delhi Education Minister announced land for the housing scheme in the capital. Mr. Sibal said the proposals were to show that the country looked after, cared for and appreciated its teachers. He clarified that he too was yet to seek Finance Ministry support.

United India eyes 15% premium increase in FY10

Public sector general insurer United India Insurance Company is confident of achieving 15(%) per cent growth in its premium income to Rs 6,000 crore this financial year on the back of sound growth from all verticals of the company.
“With tangible improvement in overall economy, we hope to achieve 15(%) per cent growth in premium income this fiscal,” G Srinivasan, CMD of United India Insurance Company said.
United India had posted a net profit of Rs 707 crore in FY10 — a 48(%) per cent rise over the related period last year. Premium income of the company stood at Rs 5,239 crore throughout the same period with an underwriting loss of around Rs 900 crore.
Referring to underwriting losses, he said, “Health and motor insurance are two areas where underwriting losses are higher for the company. While no one is making money from the health insurance section, third-party motor insurance are making losses due to low premium.”
Insurance industry in general is facing edge force in the health insurance section due to group mediclaim policies, rising cost of health expenses and general inflation. Also, the government decision to allow life insurer to sell health insurance products, margins have been additional squeezed.
Srinivasan also said the premium for third-party motor insurance claims should be increased to lessen the underwriting losses.