Zurich UK has entered the UK private medical insurance (PMI) market with the launch of a fast-track diagnosis product available for group schemes.
The LiveWell Diagnostics product offers employees private access to specialist consultations and clinical diagnostic tests before referring patients for treatment under the NHS.
It is available for businesses with at least 250 employees to be insured and was developed by its accident and health operation in consultation with three major employee benefit providers.
Zurich head of accident and health Stephane Baj told Health & Protection the insurer had been working with major benefits consultants including Aon, Willis Towers Watson and Lockton on the product and had conducted a soft launch with these firms over the last three months.
Baj (pictured) added that while it expected the large broker firms to be its main distribution partners, it was “happy to make friends” with any brokers who had clients of sufficient size.
No exclusions or out-patient limits
The policy costs from £190 to £310 per employee per year, which the insurer said was between 25% and 40% the cost of a full group medical product, and equivalent to 52p a day for the basic cover.
Cover is available to all employees, with no exclusions for pre-existing conditions and no out-patient limits.
Zurich said it also includes access to major UK private medical networks and offers case management and handover to the NHS or private medical options for treatment.
Under the higher levels of cover, employees are offered access to virtual GP appointments, physiotherapy, mental health counselling and a second medical opinion.
Employees are also able to access a health app to support their mental, physical, financial and social wellbeing which doubles as a gateway for submitting claims.
Speed up access to treatment
The insurer said it wanted to bring private healthcare into reach for firms that found full medical cover too expensive as well as those wanting to offer healthcare benefits to more of their workforce.
By providing faster access to critical tests such as MRIs, CTs and ultrasounds, the cover sets out to speed up access to healthcare treatment, it added.
The launch comes as the number of people awaiting diagnostic tests in England reached 1.2 million at the end of March, according to the latest figures from NHS England.
Baj continued: “Timely access to a GP or specialist consultant can be subject to lengthy waiting lists, which have been exacerbated by the pandemic.
“Yet at the same time, we know it’s often too expensive for firms to offer full medical plans to employees outside of senior management.
“By providing early access to healthcare, it can help firms to improve employee wellbeing, reduce the number of days lost to sickness and maintain their productivity.”
Baj added: “With rates of long-term sickness rising, and hospitals facing a backlog, private medical cover can play a role in fast-tracking access to clinical diagnosis.
“At a time when some employers might be forced to cut back on staff benefits, this solution also gives companies an option for cover that could otherwise have been lost altogether.
“As the pandemic brings a renewed focus on health, investing in private healthcare could pay dividends in attracting and retaining the best talent.”