IRDAI chief Debases Panda had said recently that the time has come for life insurance companies to re-enter the health sector. It is necessary to do this to achieve the goal of having a health policy for every citizen by the year 2030. However, later Panda said that no decision has been taken in this regard yet.
Mumbai. Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) and other major life insurers are venturing into the indemnity-based health insurance business amid clear indications from insurance regulator IRDAI to re-approve life insurance companies in the health insurance segment. Planning to step in again. Apart from LIC, insurance companies like ICICI Prudential Life, HDFC Life and Bajaj Allianz Life say that they were also offering mediclaim policies before the ban in 2016. But IRDAI stopped him from doing so.
These companies say that when the insurance regulator is indicating to allow them to sell mediclaim policies again, then they are fully prepared to step into this business again. All these companies are currently offering health policies based on non-indemnity.
Indemnity-based mediclaim policy was banned
Indemnity-based Mediclaim policies are renewable annually or are sold with a validity of one year. These are the largest selling health plans in the country. However, the insurance regulator had barred life insurance companies from selling such plans in the year 2016. Since then life insurance companies are allowed to offer only fixed benefit health plans.
LIC is reviewing the proposal received from IRDAI
When contacted, LIC said, “We are reviewing the proposal received from the regulator as health is related to our core business of life insurance.” There is nothing new in this as we have been active in this for decades and also offer many non-compensation products.LICMT Kumar, Chairman, said, “We are already offering a range of long term health protection and guaranteed health products. We are evaluating the suggestions given by the regulator.
Time for life insurance companies to re-enter the health sector: Debashish Panda
IRDAI chief Debasish Panda had said recently that the time has come for life insurance companies to re-enter the health sector. It is necessary to do this to achieve the goal of having a health policy for every citizen by the year 2030. However, later Panda said that no decision has been taken in this regard yet.
ICICI Prudential Life has a customer base of 2.63 lakh in the health sector
Private sector company ICICI Prudential Life said that it still has a large customer base of 2.63 lakh in the health sector despite allowing most of its customers to port out (changing the company while continuing the policy) due to the regulatory ban.
NS Kannan, MD, ICICI Prudential said, “We are keen to re-enter health insurance as there is nothing new in it. We have been present in this segment for many years before the sudden ban in 2016. It completely matches the life insurance business.
Bajaj Allianz Life, another life insurance company, also said that it will again focus on this sector. Tarun Chugh, MD & CEO, Bajaj Allianz Life said, “We want to understand in which direction this proposal will go. As a company, we are well positioned to meet the health insurance needs of our customers.”
