Globalsurance International Health Insurance - Expat Medical insurance products for you and your family no matter where in the world you live.

Ergo Insurance Group Enters Into New Partnerships In China and Vietnam

The German based Ergo Insurance Group has announced that it has entered into two separate insurance ventures to strengthen its presence in Asia. In China, Ergo has entered into a life insurance joint venture with a local assets investment company. In Vietnam, Ergo has acquired a stake in a Vietnamese non-life insurance specialist.

Ergo Insurance, a subsidiary of global reinsurer Munich Re, announced in January 2011, that it is setting up a 50-50 Chinese joint venture with the Shandong State-owned Asset Holding Company (SSAIH). The deal was signed in Jinan – the capital of Shandong province – by SSAIH President Liu Changsuo and the ERGO Chairman of the Board of Management Dr. Torsten Oletzky.

Speaking on the significance of the Chinese insurance venture, ERGO Insurance Group Board of Management member, Dr. Jochen Messemer, said: “China is one of the strongest growth regions in Asia. As a consequence, both private customers and companies have an increasing requirement for provident products and a safeguarding against risks.”

Ergo has been present in China for several years with a representative office in Beijing and the new 50-50 life insurance joint venture will see the German insurer opening up a head office in Shandong province. The decision to enter the market in Shandong province was taken because the region plays a pivotal economic role in the Chinese economy and it has become the third largest domestic insurance market in China. The region has a population of 92 million citizens, offering Ergo huge potential to generate high premiums with their Chinese partners.

During Ergo’s time in Beijing, the German insurer has been analyzing the Chinese insurance market, and foreign insurer competition operating in the country and now feels that the time is right to enter the life insurance sector with SSAIH. Ergo plans to use their experience in the Chinese insurance market and continue developing a suitable business and sales model for the new SSAIH joint venture.

The Duesseldorf based insurer Ergo’s Chinese joint venture will see the German insurer providing expertise in areas of sales, risk management and product development. The Ergo and SSAIH partnership is still subject to the Chinese Insurance Regulatory Commission’s (CIRCs) final approval.

The Vietnamese joint venture will see Ergo acquire a 25 percent stake in the Global Insurance Company (GIC), a local insurer specializing in non-life insurance products in Vietnam. GIC was founded in 2006 and specializes in motor vehicle, fire and transport insurance; in 2009 the company recorded premiums of approximately €11 million (US$ 14.5 million).

“We are aiming for a long-term strategic partnership to develop Global Insurance Company into a leading insurer in Vietnam. This investment is part of our strategy to become active in the highly attractive non-life insurance markets in South-East Asia.” said Dr. Jochen Messemer on the potential benefits of the Vietnamese venture.

Vietnam’s economy has enjoyed bumper growth in recent years and has become a prime market for global insurers trying to capitalize on the growth in prosperity in the country and the expanding Vietnamese insurance industry. The Vietnamese non-life market is reported to have grown by more than 20 percent annually in recent years, with this sort of trend forecast to continue. The Ergo – GIC venture is planned to be formalized in February 2011 in the capital Hanoi.

The two new Asian insurance ventures will augment Ergo’s presence in the region, and will help the German insurer to continue its international growth, offering the company scope to access two emerging markets with soaring rates of economic expansion.

The two ventures will increase Ergo’s exposure in emerging international markets and is part of the German insurer’s plans to grow on the global stage. Asia has become a vital region of the world for multi-national insurers to generate growth in written premiums. Vietnam has a growing insurance sector, which has expanded rapidly over recent years and is set to continue. China has become a crucial global economic powerhouse in recent years driven by the growing prosperity of the massive population in the country. This has created a high demand for insurance products and made the Chinese insurance sector on the most desirable markets in the world. Ergo’s initiatives are expected to produce a significant increase on the 40 million clients currently supplied and generate profitable new business.

In the Asia-Pacific region, Ergo maintains a presence in South Korea, Singapore and India. It is understood that in addition to the recently announced joint ventures in China and Vietnam, the German insurer plans to further increase its presence in the region. Outside Asia, Ergo has a high exposure across Europe and in Canada operating in travel, life, property-casualty, direct, legal protection and the health insurance sectors though such brands as Deutsche Krankenversicherung AG (DKV).

Insurance Companies Mentioned:

Ergo

Ergo is a subsidiary of Munich Re and offers a wide spectrum of insurance provision and services across 30 countries; it currently has more than 40 million customers. Ergo has a strategic focus in Central and Eastern Europe and certain Asian markets. The German insurer has become one of the leading health and legal expenses insurance companies within Europe. Additionally Ergo provides property and personal accident insurance in India.

Munich Re

Munich Re stands for exceptional solution-based expertise, consistent risk management, financial stability and client proximity. This is how Munich Re creates value for clients, shareholders and staff. It operates in all lines of insurance, with around 47,000 employees throughout the world. Especially when clients require solutions for complex risks, Munich Re is a much sought-after risk carrier. The primary insurance operations are mainly concentrated in the ERGO Insurance Group. ERGO is one of the largest insurance groups in Europe and Germany and 40 million clients in over 30 countries place their trust in the services and security it provides. In international healthcare business, Munich Re pools its insurance and reinsurance operations, as well as related services, under the Munich Health brand.

Globalsurance International Health Insurance - Expat Medical insurance products for you and your family no matter where in the world you live.

Bupa International Rolls Out Full Medical Underwriting Options

In December, Bupa International joined the ranks of international private medical insurers that offer insurance policies with full medical underwriting (FMU) options that cover individuals for pre-existing conditions.

Until recently, it has been very difficult for expatriates to obtain coverage of pre-existing conditions on individual insurance policies, as few insurers would cover them. Many group policies may be underwritten with medical history disregarded once the group is sizable enough, however customers seeking individual coverage are often left with little choice but to take up policies that either exclude coverage of any pre-existing conditions or policies which will provide coverage after a moratorium.

Bupa International will now offer customers the ability to apply for full medical underwriting when enrolling in the Worldwide Health Options product, an option that would provide coverage of a list of over 60 pre-existing medical conditions the customer may already have.

Although the list of pre-existing conditions already includes cancer, high cholesterol, hypertension and asthma among others, Bupa International’s Medical Director Dr. Sneh Khemka has said that Bupa will hope to include cardiovascular conditions and diabetes in the list in the near future. One eventual aim is to work towards setting up a system where brokers could add the premium loading themselves in clear-cut cases, in order to streamline the process.

However, Bupa International is hardly the first to pioneer international health insurance products with full medical underwriting, with companies such as DKV Globality, InterGlobal and ihi Bupa already having earned names for themselves as providers which are more flexible in covering pre-existing conditions. While InterGlobal has been offering cover for pre-existing coverage in January 2010, DKV Globality has been extending individual customers that option since 2008 leveraging its access to Munich Re’s knowledge, group expertise and scale.

The Group Underwriting Director and InterGlobal, Barry Remington, said that “It has been welcomed by the market and is an excellent means for expats to have certainty that they will be covered for pre-existing conditions which may have become excluded if they had a reoccurrence of their condition under a moratorium scheme.”

Despite the fact that ihi Bupa, previously IHI Danmark, already offered FMU options prior to being purchased by Bupa in 2005, Bupa International decided not to emulate the product in its lineup due to the fact that their IT systems and medical technology were insufficient at the time. Another reason for keeping FMU products distinct was the fact that each appealed to different markets, with Bupa International finding traction in European markets and ihi Bupa performing similarly in Asian Markets.

As one of the largest international medical insurance providers, the announcement that Bupa International will introduce full medical underwriting options could cause a change in the landscape of the international PMI industry, potentially forcing competing major insurance companies to begin offering similar products.

Insurance Companies Mentioned:

Bupa International

Bupa was established more than 60 years ago in the UK and is now has ten million customers in over 190 countries, and over 52,000 employees around the world. Bupa is a leading international healthcare provider, offering personal and corporate health insurance, workplace health services and health assessments. As a provident association Bupa has no shareholders, because of this it uses its profits to invest in healthcare and medical facilities around the world. Bupa has operations around the world, principally in the UK, Australia, Spain, New Zealand and the US, as well as Hong Kong, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, India, and China and across Latin America.

DKV Globality

DKV Globality is a leading international health insurer with a special focus on expatriates, i.e. people working or studying abroad. Global companies and their expatriate staff as well as individuals and their families place their trust in DKV Globality’s expertise. The company stands for more than 80 years’ experience in health insurance and the proven competence of an international network of assistance and service partners. It is a member of Munich Health with more than 5,000 experts at 26 locations worldwide, providing its clients and partners around the world with innovative healthcare solutions. DKV Globality is a subsidiary of Munich Re, offering the financial strength and security of one of the world’s leading (re)insurers.

ihi Bupa

Originally dubbed IHI Danmark, the company has 30 years of history as an innovative international health insurer. The company was purchased by Bupa in 2005, and became a branch in 2009 beginning to operate under the banner of ihi Bupa.

InterGlobal

InterGlobal is an international health insurance company offering international private medical insurance to expatriates, frequently traveling business people and companies around the world. InterGlobal was founded in the UK in 1998 as a joint venture company between the UK-based Inter Group and New Zealand-based Mike Henry Group. Since their founding, InterGlobal has expanded to the point where it now handles policies for clients in more than 189 countries around the globe, operating from 10 regional offices in the UK, Singapore, Kuwait, China, Dubai, Thailand, Japan, South Africa, Qatar and Vietnam.

Globalsurance International Health Insurance - Expat Medical insurance products for you and your family no matter where in the world you live.

JV in China sought by US Health Insurer

WellPoint Inc., a health benefits provider in the US, is looking for a joint venture (JV) partner in China to set up a health insurance company by 2011. Angela Braly, the president and CEO of the company, has recently visited China to meet potential partners and the Chinese regulator in charge of this industry.

The characteristics sought in the JV partner include sharing the same vision as WellPoint and may not necessarily be an insurance company.

Back in 2004, the German private health insurer DKV Deutsche Krankenversicherung AG, acquired a 19.9 percent stake in the PICC Health Insurance Co., the first health insurer in China.

Given the current progress with the implementation of their health reforms, China is becoming increasingly attractive for foreign insurers looking to take a share of business in this huge market, particularly the private health insurance segment, which is quickly becoming an important complement of the insurance programmes undertaken by the Chinese government.

According to figures from the China Insurance Regulatory Commission, health insurance premiums for the first two months of this year reached US$1.6 billion (EUR 1.17 billion), which amounts to a 34 percent increase compared to the same period in 2009.

Insurance Companies mentioned:

WellPoint

WellPoint is the largest health benefits company in USA, with more than 33 million members in its affiliated health plans. As an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, WellPoint serves members as the Blue Cross licensee for California; the Blue Cross and Blue Shield licensee for Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Missouri (excluding 30 counties in the Kansas City area), Nevada, New Hampshire, New York (as the Blue Cross Blue Shield licensee in 10 New York City metropolitan and surrounding counties and as the Blue Cross or Blue Cross Blue Shield licensee in selected upstate counties only), Ohio, Virginia (excluding the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C.), and Wisconsin. In a majority of these service areas, WellPoint does business as Anthem Blue Cross, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield or Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield (in the New York service areas). WellPoint also serves customers throughout the country as UniCare.

DKV

DKV Deutsche Krankenversicherung AG (DKV) is the largest private health insurer in Europe and operates in seven European countries. With over 7.6 million customers and premium income of over EUR 5 billion. As an international health care manager, DKV offers to their customers the best possible medical and non-medical services – at all times and around the globe. In Europe, DKV’s successful activities extend from Spain and Italy over Luxembourg, Belgium to Norway and Sweden (joint venture). In 1997/1998, Victoria, Hamburg-Mannheimer and D.A.S. merged with DKV to form the ERGO Insurance Group. ERGO is one of the major insurance groups in Europe; the majority shareholder is Munich Re.

PICC

PICC Health Insurance Company Limited (PICC) was officially launched on Apr 8, 2005 as the first professional health insurance company. PICC Health is a modern shareholding insurance enterprise sponsored jointly by PICC Group, DKV, the largest private health insurance company in Europe and other famous enterprises. PICC Health has actively introduced international advanced technology extensively consolidating external social resources and strives to provide the broad masses of people with health security, implementation of health management, which has been leading the professional health insurance market in order to realise the health of public and the harmony of society.

Globalsurance International Health Insurance - Expat Medical insurance products for you and your family no matter where in the world you live.

SWICA and DKV Globality in new partnership

A cooperation agreement has been signed between SWICA and DKV Globality. As one of the biggest health and accident insurance companies in Switzerland, SWICA aims to jointly market with DKV Globality the international health insurance cover Globality CoGenio in the Swiss market, as well as providing a local continuation of insurance option in Switzerland. DKV Globality is a leading international health insurer with a special focus on expatriates. This joint approach closes a gap in corporate health and accident plans for global companies.

.

.

.

More often than not, the staff of international companies and organizations on temporary overseas assignments have to fend for themselves or are inadequately insured when falling ill or suffering an accident. Another concern is whether they can resume the same level of cover provided by their plan upon their return to Switzerland. The partnership between SWICA and DKV Globality aims to eliminate the risk to expatriates when overseas.

Corporate clients benefit from the cooperation since it allows policyholders to switch from SWICA’s national inpatient and outpatient private health insurance solutions to DKV Globality’s international expat solutions, without the need for medical underwriting.

Globality CoGenio is an integrated, worldwide insurance solution for corporate clients in the Swiss market. This insurance solution offers the best of both worlds, since it has a wide range of assistance services and other benefits in addition to comprehensive healthcare services, ensuring comprehensive protection whilst maintaining individual local support.

Furthermore, this cooperation meets the needs of international companies by providing even wider cover. Swiss companies with international operations can now be offered by SWICA the market-leading DKV Globality products, supplementing its existing product range, whilst corporate clients in Switzerland of DKV Globality can enjoy the continuation of insurance option for staff returning to Switzerland.

A win-win situation for both companies and their clients.

Insurance companies mentioned:

SWICA
SWICA is one of the largest health and accident insurance companies in Switzerland, with a high-quality range of products and services comprising health, accident and daily allowance insurance for individual and corporate clients. Over a million people and more than 22,000 companies rely on premier service, financial security and competent assistance in the event of illness or accident. With its decentralised organisation, SWICA serves clients at over 50 locations in Switzerland.

DKV Globality
DKV Globality is a leading international health insurer with a special focus on expatriates, i.e. people working or studying abroad. Global companies and their expatriate staff as well as individuals and their families place their trust in DKV Globality’s expertise. The company stands for more than 80 years’ experience in health insurance and the proven competence of an international network of assistance and service partners. It is a member of Munich Health with more than 5,000 experts at 26 locations worldwide, providing its clients and partners around the world with innovative healthcare solutions. DKV Globality is a subsidiary of Munich Re, offering the financial strength and security of one of the world’s leading (re)insurers.