Insurers still manage to increase fees for health insurance. Even raising rates and tightening the conditions of insurance policies
 

Dependence

Voluntary Health Insurance (DMC) has become very expensive. Market participants say that over the past half-year increase in tariffs led to an increase in the cost of medical insurance policies for about 60%. The amounts cover virtually unchanged, the cost is increased as programs for individuals and corporate customers - recognizes Lesya Sherbakova, head of UK sales partner ПровіÐ´Ð½Ð°. Indeed, if past price policies DMC started from an average of 1 thousand. per year, the variation in prices now range from 2.5 thousand. to 8 thousand. per year. Increased cost of health insurance, insurance due primarily to medications and services of rising medical institutions, thereby medstrahovanie become even more profitable.

The cost of health insurance is directly related to the cost of medical care. The growth rates of foreign currencies and other factors led to the rise of a number of medicines. Insurance companies are forced to give up its economy , - said Alexander Zaletov, Deputy Director General of the League of Insurance Organizations of Ukraine (LIOU). It is true that working in the market of medical insurance, insurers show a high level of payments.

According LIOU, for 2008, insurance companies (UK) paid by health insurance policies more than 460 million UAH. Charges for premiums in 2008 amounted to more than 655 million grn.Po data LIOU, in general support to the program of medical insurance were about 1.1 million insured persons. The average payment per person in 2008 increased by 27% to 419 UAH. Unprofitableness insurers under the DPA (characterizes the relationship between insurance payments and the sum insured) averaged 93%. LIOU Experts predict that the outcome of 2009, this figure rises to 96%. It is also expected and the growth of payments (the ratio of insurance payments received and paid reparations) from 72% in 2008 to 78% in 2009, The loss of medical insurance is very high, so the UK, to effectively continue to provide this service are forced to raise rates , - says Alexander Zaletov. Agree with him and other market participants. Experts differ only in the estimates of подорожания DMC in the UK. UK must raise rates. Some commercial medical prices rise almost every month. The increase in the cost depends on the class of service - on average, the program went up by 20-30% , - says Olga Ivantsova, Head of the Maintenance Management retails SC INGO Ukraine .

However, it is necessary to take into account that LIOU resulting data is not in all areas of health insurance. Its data are taken into account the payment of continuing health insurance program providing for the treatment of clients in the UK in the event of illness, and the insurer to pay for the treatment of the insured person. At the same time Gosfinuslug also provides information on medical insurance (a payment of part or full amount of insurance clients in the event of illness, control over the use of client money from the UK does not provide). For this type of health insurance payments in 2008 amounted to more than 32 million grn., A collection of prizes - UAH 168.62 million.

 

will live

Despite the difficult economic conditions, market health insurance charges showed an increase of insurance premiums on the basis of I quarter 2009 According to Gosfinuslug, medical insurance (continuing health insurance) for January - March 2009 the UK had 206.8 million UAH. Gross insurance premiums, which is 5.8% more than during the same period in 2008, noted that with such a result medstrahovanie included in the list of types of insurance with the largest amount of gross insurance premiums, along with property insurance, life, avtograzhdankoy and t . e. Indeed the share of health insurance in the total gross premiums collected by insurers in the I quarter of this year amounted to 4.4%. It turned out to be approximately equal to that in the insurance market is the life insurance.

Many market participants are inclined to see in the results of greater interest to the public medical insurance program. In the face of the instability people want to protect themselves from unforeseen situations. Therefore, many insurers, as individuals, and companies that invest in health , - says Olga Ivantsova. Some market participants believe that the popularity of DMC is attributable primarily to the crisis and corruption in the health care system. It is because of mismanagement of funds in the health care system, and in some places and outright theft of their direct today citizens remain vulnerable to government hospitals. There is great interest of people to health insurance - argues Yuri Grishaev, director general of the Insurance Company Illichivske.

According to him, the increase in tariffs has proved a deterrent, which did not allow companies to attract many more awards from new customers. Indeed, in recent years on the market DMC trend when natural persons, despite everything to take advantage of the DPA in the policies of corporate insurance, continue to insure themselves and their loved ones in private. This shift of customers from the corporate sector in retail is quite logical. It should be noted that many corporate clients are reducing budgets for the insurance of their employees, leaving the payment of health insurance policies as bonuses for executives and professionals the most valuable.

Receiving over

However, not all are so optimistic. Many believe that the achievement of a positive result on the market medstrahovaniya in the I quarter of 2009 was made possible precisely because of increase in the cost of insurance. Increased taxes can be attributed to the higher cost of insurance programs and the extension of most of the current contracts of insurance (as opposed to sharp increases in interest of natural persons to the DPA), - thought Lesya Scherbakova. According to her, in times of crisis insurance market natural persons injured in the first place. Insurers are reducing the sale of insurance policies for this type of insurance, as the high-and require monitoring and management, - notes Scherbakova.

This explanation also has the right to life, as many of the UK did not seek to sell the policies of medical insurance to retail customers. Here is the thing in psychology and statistics. Insurers point out that when the policy pays the medical insurance company, the insured person is unlikely to immediately seek an occasion to apply to the UK for help. When a man is paid an annual program of 2-3 thousand. Then it appears the desire to immediately seek medical help, even without an acute illness, - said Alexander Zaletov. In this situation, companies that attract most of customers through retail sales at risk to get customers who already have health problems. In other words, the majority of customers who buy their own medical insurance policy, deliberately planned to use most of the sum insured for the duration of the contract. In turn, insurance, corporate clients gives the UK the opportunity to predict what proportion of the insured employees of the company or companies within a year to ask for help. In such a situation the UK interested in the development of corporate sales of the DPA and to participate in compulsory health insurance, the introduction of which is discussed for some time.

Moreover, the UK is gradually abandoning the provision of medical insurance policies for their variety of additional services not related directly to the customer's risk. In particular, the DMS program is excluded from the payment of client visits to some facilities (swimming pools, fitness clubs, etc.), service system which can not be adapted to the insurance program during the crisis period. Bonuses and discounts the company is now offering rare. In the first place goes true insurance risks - emergency, inpatient, polyclinic treatment - said Lesia Scherbakova. - Additional programs, such as rehabilitation, correction of, vitaminoprofilaktika and so on, moving away into the background, as well as budgets for these programs often do not increase or even decrease.

in the monopoly game

In this situation, companies operating in the market of medical insurance, most are afraid of competition with the state. This is understandable, because if the state will introduce a system of compulsory health insurance (MHI) by creating a single state insurance fund, insurers simply will lose most of the customers. But such a project already has been discussed in government offices. That struggle is now, by the fact that more recently, on 5 June, the Ukrainian Federation of Insurance issued a statement about the unacceptability of monopolizing the market of medical insurance. This is the situation (the monopolization of the market) can occur if a law on the financing of health care and mandatory health insurance, - said in a message УФС. Insurers believe that the bill in the event of actually remove and local governments to finance health care. Either way, the creation of a single fund will put a cross on the plans of insurers, according to which the health care system should receive funding including funds collected by private insurers under contracts of CBOs in the population, and among corporate customers. In his address УФС expressed doubts that a single fund will be able to effectively raise funds, to ensure their safety, make payments to policyholders and to monitor the quality of its medical services.

However, it is already clear that insurers are prepared to compromise with the state. Now the UK will seek the introduction of a combined system of compulsory health insurance to people who could choose someone to pay for insurance, public or private.

But here there is a problem, as well as to work in such a system should be admitted only those insurers who will be able to demonstrate their high level of solvency, transparency, investment of reserves, quality of assets, etc. An example is the introduction in Ukraine of compulsory auto insurance liability of owners of vehicles ( avtograzhdanka). Motor (Transport) Insurance Bureau of Ukraine (MTIBU) to regulate the market avtograzhdanki, was forced to deny a number of companies to work in this market, as insurers simply stopped paying royalties to the Guarantee Fund. Note that in the sphere of local self-government bodies also discussed the option, under which participation in the system, insurers will be permitted only for the high cash contributions to an insurance guarantee fund. It should be remembered that the market avtograzhdanki is estimated at 2-3 billion UAH. insurance premiums per year, while the market could potentially give JMS 15-20 billion UAH. annually, which increases the responsibility of the UK.

course, in a combined system of health insurance could be developments in the UK customer service and allow free choice of client insurance programs. Nevertheless, due to the fact that Gosfinuslug recently often revokes the license of the insurer, the question arises as to whether the insurance market to service the country's population program CBOs. Either way, its proposals УФС sent the highest state authorities, even on May 27. Similar proposals had not previously been times sounded LIOU leadership and major insurance companies active in the market of medical insurance.

Nor should we forget that their right to participate in the system of compulsory health insurance and making life insurance companies. For layfovyh Companies participating in the system of local self - this is an unprecedented opportunity to build their assets and customer base. And in this case, life insurance companies have experience in investing and long-term accumulation of funds of clients, but at the same time do not have experience with medical institutions, which gained the UK's risk medical insurance program.

Insurers …
   
   

… about the prospects

Filonyuk Alexander, president of the League of Insurance Organizations of Ukraine