Vitality saw a “significant” increase in the use of primary care services by its members as part of a “fundamental shift” in how people use their private medical insurance (PMI).
The data highlighted changes in how and when members were interacting with their health insurance, with over 40% of all health claims for primary care in 2021, compared to just 10% in 2015.
The insurer said this represented a “fundamental shift in the kind of care people are looking for and accessing as part of their health insurance”.
The data also revealed a significant increase in the use of digital healthcare services, with more than 100,000 digital consultations in 2021, consisting of GP, digital CBT and online physiotherapy appointments.
In particular, the online GP service saw a 70% increase in usage between 2019 and 2021.
Members between the ages of 25 and 40 used the service most, but consultation numbers rose across all age groups, including older members, indicating a growing familiarity with and openness to digital care, the insurer said.
Vitality will be publishing its full Health Claims Insights report on 8 June.
Dr Keith Klintworth, managing director of VitalityHealth, said: “Years ago we set out to transform what people could access within their health insurance and introduce primary care services for our members.
“The data we have released today shows the difference introducing primary care services has made to our members and reaffirms to me how important it is to continue to push the boundaries of what PMI offers.”
Klintworth added that digital technology was transforming pathways and services and said the insurer would continue to push the boundaries of what health insurance provides.