70,000 COVID-related claims worth Rs 700 crore settled by insurers: IRDAI

New Delhi: The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) said that nearly 70,000 coronavirus-related cases worth Rs 700 crore were settled by insurance companies. It had its inception in March, ever since the pandemic hit India.

Many companies were asked by the regulator to look at more standard products. This was to be done to increase the coverage and to allow customers to pay the premium in installments. This, on the other hand, would reduce the burden during the dire times of the pandemic.

Subhash C Khuntia, chairman of IRDAI, during his inaugural address at the Confederation of Indian Industry’s (CII’s) Southern Region Health Insurance Conclave on Friday said that the pandemic will lead to a change in the health insurance. Khuntia also added that in just 20 days, 4,50,000 individuals were covered under the Corona Kavach policy. Launched on July 10, he said that there are tremendous opportunities for the industry.

India’s out-of-pocket expense for health is just around 60% which is comparatively much less in other developing countries. Additionally, about 4% of the households spend 25% of their annual income in just healthcare alone. While some 17% spend about 10% of their annual income on healthcare.

According to the chairman, standardisation of products is key and India has taken a huge leap by bringing standard products. He added that we need to make medical insurance more affordable and even accessible to all.

Source: East Mojo

http://insurancealerts.in/MasterPage/MediaView/18911