What are Key Factors Driving Advancement of Private Healthcare Insurance Industry?

The Asia-Pacific region is expected to emerge as the fastest growing private healthcare insurance industry in the coming years.

With the increasing prevalence of various chronic diseases and the surging costs of healthcare and patient care across the world, the demand for healthcare insurance is growing rapidly. A healthcare insurance covers the surgical and medical expenses incurred during the treatment of the insured individual. Moreover, a healthcare insurance can reimburse the various expenses incurred during the treatment of the injury or illness or directly pay the healthcare providers for the treatment of the insured person.

There are various types of plans provided by private healthcare insurance industry players for disease, income, and medical protection. Medical insurance is the healthcare insurance policy that covers high deductible medical treatment expenses. Under this policy, only a limited amount for certain expenses such as emergency services, ambulatory patient services, and hospital bed expenses are covered. Additionally, the costs of prescription drugs, hospitalization, laboratory services, pediatric services, and mental health and substance use disorder services are covered under this insurance.

On the other hand, disease insurance is used for covering the expenses incurred during the treatment of specific diseases, injuries, and illnesses such as cancer, paralysis, heart attack, sclerosis, kidney failure, and coma. This insurance provides coverage in cases of different medical events or disease diagnosis. Under the income protection policy, a fixed and regular replacement of income is provided if the insured individual is not able to work because of an illness or injury.

This policy may not provide coverage for pre-existing illnesses or medical conditions and usually covers a maximum percentage of the tax-free salary. The private healthcare insurance industry is exhibiting rapid expansion in the U.S. This is because of the high incidence of chronic diseases, the presence of a large geriatric population, high medical costs, and the existence of various government funding programs that provide funding for healthcare insurance in the country.

As per the Population Reference Bureau (PRB) report called Aging in the United States, the population of Americans in the age bracket—65 years and above is predicted to grow by more than double, that is, from 46 million to more than 98 million from 2016 to 2060. Furthermore, according to the report, the percentage share of geriatric people in the country’s total population will increase from 15% to around 24% from 2016 to 2060. 

As the geriatric people require proper and regular medical attention and very frequent visits to clinics and hospitals, their treatments tend to be very costly. Because of this reason, the people in this age bracket invest heavily in private healthcare insurance, thereby fueling the growth of the private healthcare insurance industry. Apart from the U.S., the industry is also demonstrating huge expansion in many European countries such as Spain, Italy, the U.K., France, Switzerland, and Germany.

Hence, it is safe to say that due to the escalating healthcare costs, the surging geriatric population, and the growing incidence of chronic diseases in several countries, the industry will exhibit huge expansion all over the globe in the coming years.

Leave a Reply