The health insurance industry has registered an increase of 1.8%, or 23,000 lives covered, for the year ended in March, an eighth straight quarter of growth and the strongest growth coverage since 2001, according to a report from the Health Funds Association of New Zealand.
The report said that total lives covered for the reporting year stood at 1.366 million, driven by workplace-based health insurance, strong employment growth and an increase in interest from employers in providing subsidised health insurance plans for their workforce.
“With the 2008 global financial crisis now well and truly behind us, New Zealand is experiencing a period of jobs growth, and with more vacancies available than skilled workers to fill them, it’s a prime time for employers to offer incentives such as health insurance to attract staff,” HFANZ Chairman Geoff Annals said.
The resurgence in workplace health insurance plans is heartening, said Annals. “Employers are concerned about the wellness of their staff and see the enormous value in having them well-looked-after if they get sick. Health insurance enables them to seek treatment more promptly and be back to work sooner, thus maintaining productivity levels.”
Along with growth in lives covered, the report showed continued growth in both claims paid and premium income over the year.
Health insurance’s premium income was up by 6.3% or $82 million, sitting at $1.379 billion for year ended in March.
Its claims paid were at $1.150 billion, up by $99.4 million. The growth was largely due to a significant increase in the volume of elective surgery funded by health insurance over the year.
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