GHP September 2016

64 | ghp September 2016 Funding & Investment Innovative Private Insurance Models Shake up Healthcare Industry “Several models of innovations for health insurance and adjunct sectors have emerged in different regions of the world, while some areas experience few innova- tions,” states Frost & Sullivan transformational health research analyst Siddharth Shah. “Developing regions are increasing insurance familiarity and coverage with disease-specific insurance products and insurance as add-ons. The developed regions are incentivizing healthy behaviours with freebies and are rolling out e-Commerce initiatives.” The healthcare delivery space is witnessing numerous changes with the integration of care delivery, while insurers are keeping pace with these revolutions by engaging the services of some of the start-ups targeting the health insurance sector. Significantly, adjunct insurance sectors are turning to community and crowdsourced insurance, adding a fresh dynamic to the global market. These large-scale transformations are forcing the health insurance industry to evaluate all aspects of its business models, policy holder engagement and plan structures. The major disruptions in private insurance relate to consumerism, big data and analytics, chronic disease prevention management, mHealth tools and transition to value-based compensation. Among these, the most important changes are consumerism and transition to value-based compensation, as they com- pel insurers to alter their operational methods. “Health insurance innovations are aimed more at operations that save costs and improve efficiencies, rather than at product customizations or market awareness and access,” noted Shah. “Due to market disparities, the developed markets emphasize cost reduction, while the others focus on expanding coverage.” In the long term, most global health insurers are expected to harness the power of Big Data analytics to eliminate inefficiencies, make insight-backed deci- sions and design new products and services that can be profitable. Wearables, telehealth, mobile payments, data-security and other cutting-edge technologies too will play a huge role in the global insurer market. Web Address: www.frost.com New analysis from Frost & Sullivan, Transformations in Global Private Health Insurance Models (http://frost.ly/q9) , finds that North America is the largest private health insurance market, ac- counting for more than two-thirds of the global private insurance premium revenues, or $1.07 trillion in 2015. Europe came in a distant second with $189.54 billion, followed by Asia-Pacific with $124.07 billion, Latin America with $30.78 billion and Africa with $1.43 billion.