Health does have a price

• Almost half a million people took out a policy in 2020 coinciding with the pandemic

• Basic policies reign among health insurance and make their way among the youngest

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Health is first. This popular phrase has gained special relevance in the last year. And is not for less. In Spain, the covid has cost the lives of about 76,000 people and another 3.2 million have been infected. The saturated UCIS, the exhausted health personnel and the lack of material have put, on many occasions, against the ropes to public health who has sought support in his private namesake, for example, through subcontracting of services by the Administrations or with the voluntary transfer of patients who ‘fled’ from public saturation.

Given this, one of the consequences has been the increase in health insurance contracts, about half a million (469,750 exactly) more people signed a policy in 2020 compared to those who did so in 2019. This increase has led to 23.4% (11.05 million) of the Spanish population have some type of health insurance policy at the end of last year, compared to 22.5% in 2019, according to data from the Spanish Union of Insurance Entities and Reinsurers (UNESPA). These figures are also reflected in turnover, which has grown by 5% to reach 9,013 million euros in 2020 between healthcare, reimbursement and dental insurance.

However, industry sources say that this increase is not entirely due to covid, but that health insurance has experienced sustained growth in recent years. There were good times for insurers. The beginning of the boom period in the sector coincides with the cuts in public systems caused by the previous economic crisis. Some cuts that lasted over time, since it was not until 2018 when public health spending reached pre-crisis levels. From UNESPA they comment that public and private health should not be seen as rivals, but as complementary elements. Rowing all to one is the motto defended by the insurance employers, while it affects the numerous economic benefits that more and more citizens prefer private health to public health.

However, private healthcare has an added price, which leads one to wonder if health insurance is suitable for all budgets. Roger Pujol thinks so. The head of corporate health and wellness at Mercer Marsh Benefits adds that “we have more and more options in the market when choosing health insurance.” This variety of prices and formats means that those interested in taking out insurance are younger and with less income. A study by the consulting firm Bain & Company reveals that 18% of those who intend to take out a policy are under the age of 25. In turn, up to 23% of those who are interested in insurance charge 1,000 euros or less.

Copays, keys in basic policies

Insurance companies are taking advantage of this trend and their marketing strategy is to offer basic rate policies that can be accessed by the bulk of the population. SegurCaixa Adeslas, Sanitas, Asisa, Mapfre and DKV are the insurers with the largest number of clients, among the five they account for 75% of the total insured in Spain. All of them have policies that can be contracted for less than 30 euros per month. Pujol points out that with these inexpensive policies, clients have to be more attentive to the fine print and pay special attention to factors such as coverage limits and copays. The copayment is the amount of money a patient with health insurance pays for each health care service.

This system is very common in the cheapest rates and is a way, according to experts, that patients do not abuse health just for the fact of paying for insurance. In this way, every time a DKV insured wants to go to a general medicine consultation, they will have to pay 12 euros, the highest copayment of those analyzed, while for Caser clients, 2 euros will suffice. Of the insurances analyzed, only Vivaz and Asefa do not have a copayment in their basic rate, a fact that affects its price, which is higher than that of the other insured, 36.20 and 39.90, respectively. For its part, Sanitas has what is known as a progressive copayment, that is, the first six consultations are free and from there the price increases in a staggered manner. At 15 services or more, the cost is set at 10 euros. It should be noted that the price of the policies varies a lot depending on the sex, age, residence and conditions of the patient. For the comparison, an example was taken from a 41-year-old woman living in the Community of Madrid.

Hospitalization

The head of Mersh Marsh Benefits points to hospitalization as an essential requirement for all insurance, however, this is not always the case at the cheapest rates. Both Adeslas and Sanitas, Mapfre and Caser do not include the hospitalization service in the policies analyzed.

Psychological assistance

Psychological assistance is another point to consider in insurance. In the most expensive policies it is a recurring service, while it does not usually fit into the package offered by the most basic ones. In fact, of those analyzed, Vivaz, Asisa and Asefa do not provide this type of coverage.

Coverage abroad

As for whether the policy covers assistance abroad, the answer is positive in all the insurances analyzed, with the exception of Adeslas and Sanitas.

Dental care

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Dental coverage is also noteworthy, another factor that has always encouraged the hiring of insurance, so much so that many users opt for exclusive policies for dental care. However, the basic rates also include this service, although only the simplest aspects such as annual oral cleaning or extractions.