One of the more recent developments involves Bupa’s attempt price their insurance premiums more competitively within China. Bupa recently announced an across-the-board 30% reduction on SME plan premiums within the country. By enabling this premium reduction, Bupa hopes to develop a more extensive portfolio of SMEs and to ignite that business in hopes of SME plans matching the success of the insurers Individual plan growth in China.

Bupa has seen strong results with its individual plans, which are more costly than group insurance, and believe that by offering a 30% discount on their SME plans, they will be able to grow those plans as well. The SME market remains somewhat unstable in China, however, and Bupa may still need to make further changes to existing plans. Globalsurance analysts have suggested that an even higher discount may be necessary in order to be successful.

Bupa’s Lifeline plans, which make up the SME product line, have been on the market for more than 20 years now. In that time, Bupa has created the Essential, Classic and Gold plans, which all offer varying options of comprehensive coverage. While this series of plans have proved to be successful in other regions for more than two decades, they have not seen the same success in China. Some have attributed this to a lack of more region-specific options.

While the health insurance industry is still growing and maturing in the world’s most populous country, the standard has been set by other insurers offering much more flexible SME plans. Some features of more flexible plans include geographic restrictions or the exclusion of specific facilities on the policy.

Bupa’s plans, however, do not allow for much flexibility until there are at least 100 people included on the policy. This has been somewhat problematic for Bupa, as the Chinese market is one where the option to tailor plans has been an important factor in achieving success. Some analysts have suggested that it will be necessary for Bupa to include more opportunities for personalizing plans so that customers are more confident and comfortable when it comes to purchasing their health insurance plans.

In addition to flexibility, there have been a number of ideas circulating about how to attract more Chinese businesses and how to make SME plans more suitable for local customers.

Some companies have suggested that they would like to see narrower coverage areas, as their employees do not always require coverage outside of China. While this may seem like an easy way to bring down the cost of a premium, there are reasons to explain why this could have little effect on costs in China. One of the main reasons is that China is home to some of the world’s most expensive hospitals, and writing a plan that would include all of the country’s hospitals, particularly high-cost foreign-operated hospitals, would result in a hefty premium.

As such, limiting coverage to China only does not make a significant difference to the overall cost of a health insurance plan. Another important factor to consider is that foreign workers often times will prefer to receive care in their home country. Language and cultural barriers are common in China and the healthcare sector is no exception. As a way to attract and retain foreign employees, many companies will opt to include health insurance coverage in their employees home country if the employee chooses, or if it is an emergency situation.

Another way to address the issue of China’s high healthcare costs is to design China plans that restrict coverage at the hospitals and clinics that are known for their higher treatment costs. These facilities are often referred to as high cost providers, or HCPs. One way insurance companies are addressing the issue of HCPs is by implementing a co-payment requirement. For example, the insurance company may opt to put in place a 20% HCP co-payment where the insured would be required to cover 20% of their costs at the HCP. This method has seen success with a number of clients that want to offer HCPs to their employees, but do not want to increase the overall cost of the premium.

Some insurance policies have gone a step beyond and implemented all-out exclusions for treatment at HCPs so that policy holders will not be able to receive coverage at these places. This has been a popular method of reducing premium costs in part and allows a company to choose the plan and coverage level that fits with their employees needs.

Many analysts have suggested that Bupa will need to add these types of options to their SME plans in order to be more successful in China. Others have also expressed that the insurer will need to make their plans and products more flexible and allow for easier adjustments beyond the three products they currently offer. Many competitors already offer flexible plan options for groups of smaller sizes, and also allow for more flexibility when it comes to additional benefits, such as maternity and dental benefits.

While the Bupa brand is one of the most recognizable in the health insurance industry, relying on their strong, reputable brand will not be enough in the China market. Even though the company has been able to keep many of their plans and policies the same as they’ve developed in other emerging markets, this approach is not likely to work quite as well in a market as unique as the China market.

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The letter indicates that the pressure to meet impossible financial targets set by the troika is creating a “dire” and life threatening situation since public health expenditures reduced from 9.8% GDP (pre-crisis) to 6% GDP.

The healthcare service in Greece has traditionally been covered by national insurance, meaning that medical advice and treatment is free at the point of delivery. However, as the letter addresses, in recent years the quality of this healthcare service has been declining as the Government struggles to provide adequate care.

The squeeze on the healthcare system started several years ago when the number of staff providing care was cut back. The original aim was to economise by reducing the number of employees in bigger hospitals and medical centres, but in fact, that was just the beginning of a whole series of hospital cuts including stalling medical workers’ salaries, followed by moves to cut the number of hospitals nationwide.

On the 1st of July 2011, the Ministry for Health and Social Solidarity announced plans to cut hospital numbers from 138 hospitals to just 77 as part of a necessary reform to reduce expenses. Earlier this year, Hundreds of doctors and medical staff protested in Athens about the “dangerous” nature of these cutbacks which have resulted in undervalued and unmotivated healthcare workers.

More recently, increased delays in the Ministry of Health’s funding to a number of hospitals has lead to medical staff having to resort to old, worn down equipment as well as creating long waits for essential system updates and replacements. In the letter, the reduction in the health care budget is also blamed for an overall lack of resources in hospitals including stocks of very basic medical materials such as surgical gloves, syringes and bandages, to the extent that patients now have to cover the cost of such consumables themselves.

Last year, healthcare budget issues were so severe that it was even a struggle to provide food supplies to hospitals. Yiannis Antartis, the governor of Greek psychiatric hospital, Dromokaitio was so desperate about the situation in his own hospital that he wrote to the health ministry and major political parties warning that patients at his hospital were suffering from being poorly fed, and that it was no longer possible to supply hospital meals at the hospital. Fortunately, members of the community and charities stepped into provide rice, milk and oil, and then as a result of his letter, Antartis was promised a €150,000 payment from Greece’s caretaker health minister. However, this amount was considered to be modest when measured against the size of the hospital’s debts.

In addition to these macro problems with the government’s healthcare budget, the recent letter states that members of the Greek population also have to find the financial means to cover their own personal medical expenses (despite the fact that the average income has been reduced by 40% in recent years). New regulations as of July 2011 state that unemployed Greeks can only claim health benefits for a maximum of one year, and then they must cover the cost of their own treatment.

Considering statistics indicate that, in general, unemployed adults have poorer mental (and physical) health than employed adults, removing health coverage from thousands of unemployed people is estimated to be a very dangerous measure. Reports already indicate that there has been a more than 60% rise in suicides in Greece and surveys support this figure by indicating that the number of cases of depression in Greece has doubled in recent years, with charity helplines also reporting a huge increases in calls.

Cutting public health expenditure has also meant that Greek citizens are forced to contribute more towards the cost of their own medications and operations. According to the letter, Greek patients suffering from chronic diseases must now pay a 25% deductible for the cost of their medication (an increase in 20% since the crisis). There is also currently a “standard rate” for surgery which means that patients have to pay for up 20% of the cost of their treatment themselves in advance of the operation.

For example, this new approach means that a hip replacement surgery at a public hospital costs approximately €1000. This cost is known to be impossibly high for those who need it most- the elderly, who on average receive a basic pension of less than €600. The letter warns that such measures are likely to lead vulnerable members of the Greek population to an early grave. Statistics already show some terrifying results: cuts in HIV-prevention budgets have also seen a 200% increase in the virus, and despite WHO recommendations for 200 clean needles per year for every intravenous drug user; charities supporting drug users estimate that approximately three are available to drug users in Athens.

The letter is full of equally shocking numbers, but the Greek scholars and physicians who co-wrote it do beleive that the situation can still be reversed. Since the problems are caused in the most part by pressures to meet targets set by the economists and financial managers who make up the troika, saying ‘no’ to them, is regarded the only way to avoid a public-health disaster. The letter stresses the need to re-empower the doctors and healthcare professionals, not just because they are in a position to offer sound advice about healthcare policies and practices, but because if they are not consulted or motivated, the remaining medical workers will leave Greece to find work elsewhere, just like the 4,000 plus highly trained Greek doctors who have already done so.

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This new alliance will be a great opportunity for both organizations and will expand the offerings of available health care solutions to a broad spectrum of customers. Furthermore, this partnership will ensure quality medical care coverage and access to programs and facilities to these customers, while also providing access to a vast network of international medical care providers.
Mark Bertolini, Aetna’s Chairman and CEO, expressed his satisfaction and excitement of the new alliance by saying that Aetna is delighted to be able to work with Tawuniya. He is hopeful that the pair will be able to provide some of the best health insurance options and medical care solutions available on the market. He particularly noted the two companies’ commitments to providing high-quality and also reasonably priced options for medical coverage.

Ali Subaihin, Tawuniya’s CEO, also expressed his thoughts on the new strategic partnership. He said that Tawuniya is looking forward to be able to partner with Aetna so that they are able to provide even more comprehensive medical solutions to not only the large population of foreigners living in the country, but also to the Saudi people. He spoke of the ambitious plans that the two companies have and that he is excited for the opportunities that may come in the future.

As part of the new cooperation, for the 80,000 students who are on undergraduate or graduate school scholarships from the Saudi Arabia Cultural Mission, Aetna will provide the coverage needed in the United States, meanwhile Tawuniya will ensure that the students have health insurance when they are back in the Kingdom.

The alliance goes beyond students, however, and offers another approach for Tawuniya’s international health insurance coverage for those with the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This group will now be able to access more than 100,000 health care facilities and doctors that are within Aetna’s international network and will be able to take advantage of the company’s customer services.

Furthermore, Tawuniya will offer existing customers of Aetna special services while they are living in Saudi Arabia. Some of the services that will be made available include Council of Cooperative Health Insurance-accredited coverage. Aetna customers will also be able to access the 1,100 health care facilities that have direct-settlement services with Tawuniya.

Sandip Patel, who serves as the head of Aetna International, is also enthusiastic about the new cooperation and believes that customers will be able to access more comprehensive solutions when it comes to their health care. In particular, he noted that Aetna’s expertise with wellness, disease management and prevention programs will be a significant benefit for those living in Saudi Arabia.

Another benefit to note will be that new customers will also be able to take advantage of the many online resources that Aetna provides, which include an online platform to view and manage their policies, applications for mobile and tablet devices to help customers locate doctors and medical facilities, news about health and security risks, and translation services for drug and health care information.

Lastly, Aetna will also assist Tawuniya in the area of reinsurance as well as consult on how to develop their products.

Globalsurance analysts are excited about the news of this new alliance and are confident that the two companies will be able to further develop their product and service offerings to benefit even more customers in the region.

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Most analysts agree that the glaring vacancy at CMS has been due to politics. Any CMS administrator nominated by the president must first be approved by the U.S. Senate. If senators are feeling particularly unhappy with a president or his health care legislation, they are much less likely to approve a new CMS chief.

Then again, despite the current ill will toward President Obama and his Affordable Care Act, 91 senators (both Republican and Democrat) this week have finally confirmed an administrator to head the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services – Marilyn Tavenner.

Ms. Tavenner is a former nurse and health care worker from the state of Virginia, with more than 20 years experience at the Hospital Corporation of America. Since 2011, Tavenner has been the acting chief of CMS; carrying out the basic duties of a head administrator, without the official title or Senate confirmation. The New York Times reports that during this time at CMS, she has managed to gain the approval of Republican and Democrat legislators for her ability to work with both political parties, and to attack problems at CMS with a pragmatic, business-minded attitude.

Indeed, gaining bipartisan approval is important for a nominee to be appointed head at CMS. The last CMS chief, Mark B. McClellan, stepped down from his position in 2006. Former President George W. Bush was in office, and nominated a man named Kerry Weems to fill the role left vacant by McClellan. Although Weems brought with him a great deal of federal health administrative knowledge, having worked extensively with the Department of Health and Human Services, Democrat Senators prevented Weems from being confirmed as head of CMS.

Democrats didn’t want to approve Weems because doing so would be seen as implicitly supporting Bush’s recent health care legislation. Just before the Weems appointment came up for debate, Former President Bush vetoed an insurance bill that would have provided $60 billion over five years in order to enroll around 3.4 million children onto the State Health Insurance Children’s Plan. In a political stand against this Bush veto, Senate Democrats refused to move forward with the confirmation of Kerry Weems as head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Politics has continued to play a large role in the nominations and confirmations of CMS heads – or rather, lack of confirmations. Former President Bush was unable to get another CMS chief confirmed before leaving his position at the White House. As for the current president, Obama previously nominated one other person for the job of CMS head: a former Harvard professor named Donald Berwick. With much experience in health care management and endorsements from national medical societies, Berwick seemed like an excellent choice to head the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. However, Senate Republicans thought otherwise – Berwick had publicly admitted his admiration for the British National Health Service, and therefore could not be trusted to run CMS in a fitting manner.

After Berwick’s comments, such as “I am romantic about the (British) NHS. I love it,” 42 U.S. Senators wrote to President Obama asking him to withdraw his nomination of Dr. Berwick. The President complied, and the hunt for an acceptable head of CMS continued.

During confirmation hearings, the newly-appointed CMS head Marilyn Tavenner also came up against a roadblock; strangely, this halt in her proceedings came from a Democrat. Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa put a hold on Tavenner’s nomination, making the Senate wait an entire week before a confirmation vote could occur. Senator Harkin interrupted proceedings in order to express his disapproval of the Obama Administration’s recent practice of removing money from a newly-created federal fund known as the Prevention and Public Health Fund. As one of Harkin’s personal contributions to the Affordable Care Act, the senator held Tavenner’s proceeding hostage in order to raise awareness about misuse of the Prevention and Public Health Fund, and to encourage the administration to stop its dipping into the fund. Once again, CMS nominee proceedings were interrupted by health care politics.

Clearly, the recent bi-partisan confirmation of Marilyn Tavenner as CMS head administrator is a long-awaited opportunity for both excitement and relief amongst CMS workers and government legislators who have bided their time for nearly seven years hoping to see an official chief confirmed to head CMS. With her strong record of cooperation and experience within CMS, politicians have good reason to expect that CMS has finally been given the chief officer it needs. Because CMS is heavily involved in advising legislators on health care laws, practices and financial matters, having a CMS head approved by 91 out of 100 Senators is an excellent sign that the U.S. Senate and the Centers for Medicare and Medicare Services will be able to work well together in the future.

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One of the best ways to make sure that you are not put in the overwhelming situation of trying to navigate a foreign country’s healthcare system, is by protecting yourself with international health insurance coverage. This will usually cover doctor’s visits, vaccinations, health checks and prescriptions. There are even options to cover other items like chiropractor visits or physiotherapy treatment.

Some may wonder if they already have travel insurance, whether they need international health insurance too. The short answer is yes. If you are living abroad long term and need medical insurance coverage, you should ideally obtain an international medical insurance policy. Travel insurance is designed for short or time-restricted holidays and is not meant to serve as insurance for long stays or residence in that country.

Furthermore, travel insurance often times will limit coverage to emergency situations, and will not typically cover routine medical needs such as prescriptions, general check-ups and other similar visits. These plans are not designed for expatriates. On the other hand, international medical insurance plans have been uniquely designed with the expatriate in mind, knowing that they may need a different option for healthcare coverage while in their residing country.

One of the most beneficial aspects of obtaining an international medical insurance policy is being able to access coverage for medical relocation. As an expatriate, you may have to travel to more remote areas, where healthcare standards may not be high and where there may not be facilities that can meet your need. With international medical insurance, you will be able to be transported to a facility within that country that can adequately treat you.

This differs slightly from a medical evacuation benefit, whereby if you need to be evacuated to your home country, transportation costs as well as medical costs can be covered. Furthermore, coverage will usually cover transportation and spending costs for a close family member to travel with you.

Another important thing to know about international medical insurance is that there are a number of different options when it comes to coverage.  First of all, many insurance companies offer special insurance to students, an option many students tend to overlook. One benefit of these plans is that they can be valid for the length of a semester or for a full year. These flexible plans provide full coverage for students studying overseas.

There are a plethora of benefits that accompany obtaining international medical insurance while living overseas. Coverage options vary and often times can be specially tailored to meet people’s more unique needs or requests. In addition to providing coverage for routine medical needs, emergency care, vaccinations and prescriptions, many policies are broadening their scope of coverage and are offering coverage options for alternative benefits such as Chinese traditional medicine, dental, acupuncture and more.

Travel insurance is adequate enough for short term travelling or vacationing, but to ensure the most comprehensive care possible when abroad, an international medical insurance plan clearly offers many more benefits.

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The study, conducted at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts, tested the health of Boston stroke patients’ kidneys. Half of the patients in the study lived within a kilometre of a major road, whereas the other half lived between 1km and 10km away from a major road.  The patients were tested for the levels of creatinine in their blood – a by-product of muscle metabolism that ought to be filtered out of the body by the kidneys. Creatinine in the blood provides an indication of kidney function known as glomerular filtration rate (GFR).

Even when taking into account the patients’ age, sex, habits and other underlying conditions, scientists found a significantly lower GFR, which is indicative of kidney problems, in those patients who lived particularly close to main roads.  In comparison with patients living within 1km of the main road, the patients who lived within 50m had, on average, the GFR of someone four years older, the scientists found.

This is certainly not the first time traffic pollution has been associated with poor health. As previously mentioned, exhaust fumes are known to increase the risk of heart disease and strokes, and recently the health risks of pollution have been identified again and again. A study published in Environmental Health Perspectives in February looked at more than three million births in nine nations, and found that pregnant women living in polluted areas were more likely to have babies of low birth weight.

Children with a low birth weight have a higher risk of health problems, and whilst most survive, they are more likely to develop conditions such as diabetes and heart disease in later life. The findings in February indicated the relationship between the child’s birth weight and pollution was dose-related; that is, the higher the exposure, the lower the average birth weight.

Moreover, scientists emphasise the importance of good health in all the vital organs, as problems in one can affect another adversely. For instance, most people with kidney disease suffered from high blood pressure (which increases the risk of heart disease), and, in turn, heart disease frequently places strain on the function of kidneys.  Health experts emphasise the importance of cutting down exhaust fumes and traffic pollution wherever possible in order to reduce the threat pollution poses to our health.

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There is no malaria vaccine, and it is not possible to eradicate every insect carrier from the face of the earth. These facts alone make malaria an important issue in the world of science and health care, but recently, malaria has been getting even more media coverage – both in terms of positive scientific developments, as well as threatening trends in drug-resistant malaria infections.

One of the most exciting bits of recent malaria news was published this month in the journal Science, and detailed the findings of one American research team. The team has been experimenting with a type of bacteria known as the Wolbachia bacterium. This bacteria is special, because when a mosquito is infected with Wolbachia, the insect will become resistant to malaria. Similar to the use of probiotic bacteria in humans, Wolbachia helps mosquitoes fight off other, more harmful bacteria, such as that leading to malaria infections.

However, there is one major problem with the Wolbachia bacterium – it doesn’t stick around. The bacteria can be transferred to a mosquito, but will soon leave the insect’s body. When the Wolbachia bacterium has disappeared from the mosquito, all the protective effects of the bacteria disappear as well, leaving the mosquito once again vulnerable to contracting and spreading malaria.

Luckily, the aforementioned malaria research team has found a way to make the Wolbachia bacterium last longer. These scientists have developed an innovative method of creating an entirely new type of mosquito, then putting this insect into the general population to mate and spread its unique DNA. This DNA has been designed by the scientists to carry the Wolbachia bacterium. These specially-designed mosquitoes are therefore resistant to malaria, and will pass on those genes to offspring. With these new insects, an entire population of mosquitoes could become malaria-free in just a few generations.

Of course, more work is still needed to put this Wolbachia research into use. One problem is that these malaria-resistant mosquitoes reproduce more slowly than normal mosquitoes, and so unless scientists can overcome the fragility of Wolbachia mosquito eggs, the use of this bacterium in preventing malaria may be limited.

Another recent development in the world of malaria research concerns malaria treatment in humans. Right now, the most effective form of malaria treatment is an herbal compound known as artemisinin. This compound comes from the wormwood plant, and is extremely useful for its naturally occurring anti-malarial properties. Nearly all cases of malaria will be treated with some form of artemisinin.

The problem with artemisinin, however, is that the price of this herbal compound has been extremely unstable. As global demand for artemisinin has increased, prices have risen greatly – in 2003, the compound sold for around USD $100 per pound; by the end of 2004, the cost per pound was more than $500. Since that leap, the cost of artemisinin has both risen and fallen, leading to a situation wherein affordable access to the drug cannot be guaranteed.

To help more malaria victims, many of whom cannot afford expensive artemisinin drugs, scientists have for years been working to develop a synthetic version of the artemisinin compound; one that does not come from the wormwood plant, and will not be subject to the same price fluctuations. Researchers in California reported this month that they have found a new method of creating synthetic artemisinin, utilizing baker’s yeast. A full summary of these scientists’ findings and methods is available here.

The process of creating a synthetic version of artemisinin was not easy; indeed, researchers working on the project have commented that the likelihood of developing a usable, non-natural artemisinin compound was very slim. Now that the project has achieved success, scientists and health care workers are excited about the possibility of soon getting new anti-malaria drugs on the market; drugs that can treat malaria, and be produced and sold in a more cost-effective manner.

Unfortunately, these excellent developments in malaria research highlight the dangers of the disease; especially when the illness becomes resistant to drugs. Drug-resistant strains of malaria are on the rise in Southeast Asia especially, due in large part to political instability and a strong counterfeit drug market in Burma.

Malaria treatment drugs in Burma can be bought and sold without a prescription, and to save money, many people will purchase these treatments on the black market. Unfortunately, unregulated and counterfeit malaria drugs are often just sugar pills containing a very small amount of an anti-malarial ingredient, such as artemisinin. When a person infected with malaria takes these counterfeit drugs, the anti-malarial ingredient will not be potent enough to cure the infection; even worse, the microorganisms not destroyed by the drug treatment will grow stronger, creating a new malaria strain that is resistant to the drugs to which it has been exposed.

The issue of counterfeit malaria drugs is also affecting the Congo; a nation where, according to some research, nearly half of all anti-malarial drugs on the market are ineffective. This is an especially pressing issue for an African country, because the continent of Africa accounts for more than 90 percent of all malaria deaths. According to the World Health Organization, an African child dies from malaria once every minute.

Still, researchers are aware of the counterfeit drug problem and working hard to combat it. The National Public Radio news service in America recently published a story about an Italian researcher studying mosquitoes on the Thai-Burmese border, and working to develop a new drug that will fight malaria before symptoms of the infection manifest. Malaria will normally become evident around ten days after an individual has been bitten by an infected mosquito. If malaria treatment can begin before symptoms appear, people will be less likely to seek out counterfeit medication, and drug-resistant malaria should decrease.

Malaria is an illness with many challenges, and yet new research indicates that there are many reasons to be hopeful that by the time we celebrate World Malaria Day on April 25th next year, we will have seen even more promising global developments in preventing and treating the disease.

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So, why have so many organizations in the insurance industry recently issued dire warnings that the Affordable Care Act will be devastating to young people?

At the moment, insurance plans are legally allowed to charge older beneficiaries higher premiums. Insurers will ask these older buyers to pay more up front, because they are generally in need of more health care services. Aging Americans have a higher risk of diabetes, heart disease and other chronic diseases that may require frequent, costly treatment. Older adults may also incur higher costs in terms of recovering from accident or injury, and are more likely than young people to visit the doctor for general wellness check-ups. With more usage of the health care system, insurance companies are understandably inclined to charge higher premiums to older adults.

However, Obamacare changes national policy with regards to age-based insurance pricing. Starting in 2014, insurance companies will be forbidden from charging an older customer more than three times the amount that is charged to a younger customer. If a 27-year-old beneficiary pays $2,000 in annual premiums, a middle-aged adult on the same plan cannot legally be charged a premium of more than $6,000. This pricing policy is meant to limit age-based discrimination, while still allowing insurance companies to receive adequate compensation for taking on older clients who may require more health care coverage.

While this policy change seems like a great move for increasing fairness and stopping discrimination, young people could be hurt in the process. If an older client cannot legally pay more than three times what a younger client is paying, young adults may be asked to pay higher premiums than they currently do. After all, it is unlikely that an insurance company would be able to lower one customer’s bill without raising costs for other beneficiaries. In essence, then, younger insurance holders might end up subsidizing the now-cheaper coverage available to older adults.

Earlier this year, one management and consulting firm sent an analyst to testify at the federal leval about potential insurance price increases for young people. In front of the United States Energy and Commerce Subcommittee, this analyst warned that young insurance buyers must be more thoughtfully considered when insurance legislation is being passed. According to studies conducted by his firm, if insurers were to lower prices for older adults due to the ACA mandate, premium price for beneficiaries in their 20s could increase from current levels by as much as 29 percent.

The group American Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) has also campaigned policy makers to reconsider the limits on age-based pricing. AHIP agrees that changing the cost policy to a 1 to 3 pricing model may lead to higher costs for younger people; studies by AHIP have backed up this assumption. The group is also concerned that American youth may choose to forego insurance altogether – preferring to pay as little as $100 per year rather than remain with their insurance policy and pay higher premiums. If fewer young people purchase insurance, it will mean higher costs for everyone, and poorer health for the nation.

AHIP has encouraged the Department of Health and Human Services to delay the new pricing model until other ACA reforms have come into effect. In that way, the insurance industry will not be at risk to suffer financial loss at a time when the market is already experiencing so many new reforms.

Then again, this pricing policy to limit costs for older adults will not necessarily lead to higher costs for young people. The group HealthPocket have looked at data from more than 3,000 individual health plans across the nation, and found that 36 states already have plans which follow the 1 to 3 pricing model. Residents of these states should therefore not see any change in premium costs once the Obamacare pricing rules come into effect. HealthPocket did, however, note that men may see higher insurance rates – right now, women are generally charged higher premiums, but the ACA will ban that practice come 2014. To equalize prices for men and women, men may be asked to pay more. Then again, 13 states already ban the practice of gendered pricing, and so once again, male customers in these states may see little change in coverage costs.

Indeed, the issue of young people and health insurance is nothing new. For years, the health care and insurance industries have expressed concern over the fact that young Americans may feel invincible against health maladies, and therefore fail to purchase insurance. In 2009, an advocacy group was formed to encourage youths to buy insurance, and stand up for the rights of young people on the health and insurance marketplaces. The group, Young Invincibles, is also hoping that age-based pricing schemes don’t turn into an excuse for insurance companies to raise rates for younger buyers.

Until the new pricing rules come into place in 2014, it is impossible to know if insurance rates will be raised, and for whom. In the mean time, advocates and politicians on both sides of the issue will no doubt continue to fight for health insurance that is both fairly priced, and affordable to all.

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In just the first quarter alone, Cigna’s number of international customers increased by 277,000, and data suggests that the company will see annual earnings in the range of $1.735 billion to $1.865 billion. To add to these encouraging figures, consolidated revenues are up by 21% when compared to the same time period in 2012.

Cigna’s strong and promising figures can be attributed to the company’s commitment to their strategy and the ability to provide valuable services and products to their international clients, said David M. Cordani, Cigna’s president and CEO. He added that the company has a wide variety of solutions that fit both individuals and employers and that place high importance and emphasis on cost-effectiveness and quality. These are the features of Cigna that Mr. Cordani believes will help the company continue to see growth beyond 2013.

Meanwhile AXA, Europe’s second-largest insurance group as measured by the value of the market, has reported a 3% increase in sales during the first quarter. Sales increased by 800 million Euros when compared to the same period in 2012. Much of this growth occurred outside of its European base in countries like Turkey, Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia and countries in the Gulf, and the company remains committed to expansion in these areas.

For Germany’s Munich Health, the company saw a slight increase in premium growth of about 0.6% but reinsurance experienced a slight decrease by 0.8%. However, analysts attribute this decline to currency fluctuations and believe that if exchange rates had not changed, Munich Health’s premium sales would have seen an increase of about 1.1% as compared to 2012.

One small hiccup experienced by Munich was that business written by Munich’s primary American insurer, Windsor Health Group (WHG), saw losses of about $19 million. In light of this upsetting news, Munich announced their commitment to assist with WHG’s situation with great focus.

Another German insurer, Allianz S.E., reported that their net income was about $2.23 billion for the first quarter of this year, which is about $0.3 billion more than the same period in 2012. The company’s operating profit also saw growth of about 20%. Michael Diekmann, Allianz’s CEO of Allianz, said in a statement that the company’s growth has come from all of Allianz’s different business segments.

As international markets pick back up and opportunities for new growth and development open up in emerging markets, many international health insurance companies are expressing optimism for the rest of 2013. Globalsurance analysts are reiterating this enthusiasm and believe that the market and product and solution offerings will continue to expand and diversify throughout the rest of this year.

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These frightening statistics give some clue as to why health officials in Saudi Arabia and surrounding countries are more than a little concerned that just this week, at least two more people have died from a SARS-like virus. This virus has been infecting citizens on the Arabian Peninsula since last year, but recently, deaths related to the virus have greatly increased – the World Health Organization reports a current death toll of eighteen. 

Known as the novel coronavirus, this illness comes from the same family as the virus responsible for the SARS pandemic in 2003. Because the novel coronavirus has never before been seen in humans (hence the name), a great deal of information about the disease is not known. Although the novel coronavirus is found in bats, the WHO has reported it is unlikely that these animals transferred the disease to humans, due to variations between the animal and human strains of the virus. Human to human transmission is definitely possible – already, a British man who had recently visited Saudi Arabia and Pakistan returned home with symptoms of the novel coronavirus, and passed on the infection to two family members.

Like SARS, the novel coronavirus will cause severe respiratory symptoms, including coughing, difficulty breathing, and fever. In worst case scenarios, a patient may experience pneumonia or kidney failure.

Since it was discovered in 2012, the novel coronavirus has infected a total of 27 people, according to the most recent information from the World Health Organization. Of those 27 people, all have either resided in or paid a recent visit to the Arabian Peninsula. The most recent coronavirus deaths occurred this week, and, in the past five days, Saudi Arabia has reported seven fatalities due to the virus. The Saudi Ministry of Health also reports that at least six other people are currently in a health care facility receiving treatment for a coronavirus infection.

So, what happens now? To begin, health organizations in the Arabian Peninsula and worldwide are hoping for a good level of transparency – when SARS cases first arose in 2002 in the Chinese province Guangdong, the media in China was discouraged from reporting about the outbreak. World Health Organization officials were refused entrance to the province, and it was not until February 2003 that the extent of that initial SARS outbreak was fully understood. Due to that lack of transparency, the virus was given time to spread – health care workers were not prepared for SARS, travel limitations were not enforced, and those infected were not properly quarantined.

Luckily, the Chinese government realized that keeping the SARS epidemic a secret would not be possible, and officials decided to completely change their SARS policy. The central government began to demand that local officials report all SARS cases as quickly and accurately as possible. With better information from hospitals around the country, China and the World Health Organization were better equipped to fight the battle against SARS.

In Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Arabian Peninsula, cases of the coronavirus are being reported, but the World Health Organization has expressed some concerns over the transparency of information. The fact that Saudi Arabia announced the deaths of seven people over five days may indicate that knowledge of these novel coronavirus fatalities was known for some time to health officials before it was made public on an international scale. Information about that patients’ ages and genders, and how long they were ill and under treatment for the disease, has been slow to come.

However, neither the World Health Organization nor other groups such as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control have issued travel warnings against visiting Saudi Arabia or any other country. Although travelers are not advised to change their plans, the Centers for Disease Control does recommend that anyone near the Arabian Peninsula take care to monitor their health, and be vigilant for respiratory symptoms.

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