Consumer demand for wellness products and services has been accelerated by COVID-19. This sharpened focus on wellness presents insurers with the opportunity to create innovations and partnerships that yield positive outcomes for their customers and their businesses.
Insurance companies will find natural synergies with companies in the wellness ecosystem. Those that help customers remain healthy and independent can also help reduce or delay life, disability and long-term care costs. It’s a win for both the customer and the insurer when the need for these kinds of claims can be delayed or reduced.
Many seniors and caregivers are now especially concerned about long-term care needs. COVID-19 has caused disproportionate mortality in care homes, so there is added incentive to help older people age in place.
Promoting healthy aging
Increases in long-term care claims are being driven in part by Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. During a recent insurtech panel discussion, Elli Kaplan, co-founder and CEO of Silicon Valley-based Neurotrack, talked about the toll Alzheimer’s had taken on her own family and her reasons for wanting to work in this space.
Neurotrack is building a cognitive health platform allowing individuals to check their cognition and learn about personalized lifestyle changes that can help keep their brains healthy and delay cognitive impairment. Additionally, Neurotrack works with insurers in the pre-claim space, helping to accelerate underwriting with remote cognitive assessments for life and long-term care applicants.
Rewards for good health habits
Insurers are also finding ways to innovate beyond their core and better meet their customers’ wellness needs. For example, Manulife’s approach to behavioral insurance was enabled by their ManulifeMOVE app launched in 2015. Behavioral insurance allows the company to reward customers for sharing data about their healthy habits and choices.
Customers are responding. There are now about one million customers in six Asian markets using the app, and the data show that users of all ages are changing their behavior and remaining engaged with the program.
Doing well by doing good
I’ve said many times that insurance is ultimately about experience with the insurer there to support the customer through a difficult event. While that underlying truth will not change, technologies, socio-economic challenges and cultural values are constantly evolving. Consumers are now looking to trusted brands to support them and their families. Insurers who offer that support are more likely to be rewarded with customer trust and loyalty.
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