ITIC APAC 2019 Hong Kong review

This year’s ITIC APAC event brought together representatives from all over the APAC region and beyond to talk about business challenges and opportunities, to network, and to learn more about exciting industry developments in the local travel and health insurance sphere. A packed agenda featuring engaging speakers and informative presentations, together with plenty of opportunity for social and business networking, made for an inspiring conference. Here’s ITIJ’s full review.

On the agenda … Day 1

ITIC APAC Hong Kong opened with a panel session looking at medical costs and inflation in the Asian region. First to speak was Thalia Georgiou, Managing Partner, Healthcare Advisory, Asia Care Group in Hong Kong, who said that there are clear challenges to healthcare in the region. She pointed out that although Southeast Asia’s health markets are dynamic and exciting, great caution must be exercised when investing. She added that there was a significant need for affordable care options with prevention and disease management at their core. Thalia said that due diligence is imperative for investors as assets often do not perform as expected. She also cautioned that corruption and fraud could easily account for 10-to 30-per-cent profit loss. 

Next, Lynne Fung, Executive Director, Business Development at Matilda International Hospital in Hong Kong, stressed the importance of building trusted relationships as insurance payments were responsible for around 80 per cent of cases, with more than 50 per cent being direct billing. She said that trust begins before a patient arrives at a hospital and is built through engagement and measured in ethics, integrity and commitment. Lynne then went on to present details of a complicated case in which the hospital was repeatedly asked for discounts, including a request at the end of the patient’s treatment for 35 per cent off. She said that there was a need for transparency in pricing from the start and where there was a trusted system in place, trying to negotiate price reduction at the end could only damage the relationship. 

Although Southeast Asia’s health markets are dynamic and exciting, great caution must be exercised when investing

Dr Zubin Daruwalla, Health Industries Leader with PwC South East Asia Consulting in Singapore focused on his country’s healthcare system, saying that medical expenses, surgical costs, critical illness treatments, disability and long-term care in the island state are covered by multiple layers of protection through four publicly funded healthcare insurance schemes, and complemented by private health insurance. He added that the public sector dominates acute care, while private sector providers focus on primary and specialist care. Dr Daruwalla said that, by 2020, healthcare expenditure in Singapore is expected to increase to even more than 2018’s budget of SG$10.2 billion due to its ageing population. He noted that the government has said that rising healthcare costs was not sustainable, meaning that the population must try and remain healthy. He quoted Singapore’s Health Minister, Gan Kim Yong, who said that a paradigm hift approach to ageing and health was needed ‘to move beyond the hospital to the community, to move beyond quality to value, and to move beyond healthcare to health’. 

The second session of the day focused on some of the market challenges prevalent in the APAC region, and how these can be turned into market opportunities. Ben Loh, Chief Digital & Marketing Officer at Tune Protect Group in Malaysia, was up first with an engaging presentation about the way his company has digitised its insurance offering and is adapting to consumer demands for instant cover and a ‘friendly’ claims environment by working with eWallets and geo-apps. At the same time, the company is working with other providers, such as Air Asia, and monitoring data available from them to increase its reach further, using social media and dynamic websites powered by AI and machine learning to encourage purchasing. 

Amy Villalobos, Head of International Benefits Management for nib Health Funds in Australia, followed with insights on the wider APAC market and insurers’ shift from ‘sick care’ to ‘health care’, where wearables and fitness programmes are giving customers greater value and providing an investment in their future. There is no ‘Asian market’, though, said Amy, just individual markets with individual needs. In China, for example, there has been a shift from group to individual travel, and customers are looking for ease of payment and ease of claim. They also want to able to operate within existing apps, such as WeChat. The key challenge is understanding individual consumers. 

Brokers for Chinese tour groups are how most policies in the region will be sold in the coming years

Rounding off this session, Tan Chien-Wei, Director of Ulink Assist in Myanmar, took an enlightening look at the nascent healthcare landscape in Myanmar and emphasised the importance of Chinese travellers in the region. Thailand, he said, has overtaken France as the most visited country in the world due to Chinese travellers. Brokers for Chinese tour groups are how most policies in the region will be sold in the coming years. 

Next on the agenda on Day One of ITIC APAC was a session on telemedicine for expats, with a focus on mental health support. David Thomas Boucher, Chief Business Transformation Officer for Bumrungrad International Hospital in Thailand, Myra Yu, Vice-President of Teladoc Health International & CEO APAC in China, and Laurent Pochat-Cottilloux, Global Head – Health Reinsurance Partnerships for AXA Global Healthcare in Singapore, shared their unique personal experiences of providing telehealth services in Asia, explained why the local market has seen impressive growth in telemedicine use in recent years, and gave insights into why access to care in this way is set to keep growing. 

Myra told attendees that we’re going to see much more telehealth over the next five years. In Asia, a shortage of doctors, often short consultation lengths, and a significant proportion of incorrect diagnoses in the healthcare sector, together with a growing online commercial landscape, are fueling the growth of telemedicine. With telehealth giving better access to primary care in areas where it’s much needed, David explained how on-demand telemedicine is giving patients a better experience through the convenience, cost-saving and security it offers. Provider-sponsored telemedicine is the most effective, he said. Laurent rounded off the session with a couple of case studies that highlighted the importance of increasing awareness among expatriate employees around access to mental health services through virtual platforms.

Concluding day one was an insightful session on operating air ambulances within China and a look at the country’s evolving risk pool when it comes to health insurance. Dr Winston Jong, Group Medical Director of EMA Global in Singapore, took to the podium first to explain some of the issues faced by air ambulance crews attempting to repatriate patients out of China. Citing a particular patient case, he said it is often almost impossible to speak to a treating doctor, so in this instance the company was able to get the patient’s family to take photos of medications and monitor screens to get an idea of the patient’s health status. A photo of the treating doctor’s badge allowed them to call and ask to speak directly to that doctor, which eventually resulted in them receiving the medical statement – with the essential ‘red stamp’ – that is needed in order to obtain a landing permit to enter China. Other issues Dr Jong highlighted were understanding medical forms due to language barriers and medical jargon, the expense associated with landing in China, airport delays and having sufficient oxygen, sometimes not being allowed to remove oxygen tanks from aircraft, incompatible tank regulators, and the need to have a comprehensive equipment list to enter the country.

It is often almost impossible to speak to a treating doctor

Lily Chen, Managing Director of Essential Benefit Solutions Company Ltd in China, gave an interesting perspective on the health insurance landscape in China, explaining that the health status of employees in the country is getting worse, as they are ageing – the average age is now 35. Pollution is also very bad in the country, and together with long working days and weeks exacerbating health problems, plus the fact that a drop in the economy thanks to the trade war with the US has seen expats moving out of China, insurers are witnessing a shifting risk pool that includes a growing number of Chinese and fewer expatriates. The good news is that Chinese people are increasingly seeking out mid-and high-end medical insurance coverage, said Lily, and they are willing to pay more for this coverage for themselves and family members.