Cigna surveys expats
Cigna Global Health Benefits recently released its ‘Expatriate Trends Study 2015: Employee Expectations Re-Examined’, co-sponsored by the National Foreign Trade Council
“As a long-standing health services partner of the expatriate community, Cigna closely monitors changing attitudes towards working overseas and the requirements of today’s globally mobile business professionals,” commented Howard Gough, Cigna’s MENA (Middle East/North Africa) CEO and CEO of the company’s global individual private medical insurance division. “Working abroad is increasingly seen as an investment in one’s career development and employers need to adapt to meet the expectations of quality talent accordingly. Personalised services and proactive communication at each stage of the assignment lifecycle clearly contribute to the success of overseas posting, according to our research.”
Access to good healthcare services via insurance was seen as a top priority by expats in the MENA region, according to the study, with nearly three quarters of respondents based in this region saying that they were satisfied with their ability to access healthcare (the global average is 56 per cent). In response to the question of whether the compensation and benefits offered by their employer were attractive to them, 54 per cent of MENA-based respondents agreed and 33 per cent strongly agreed, with healthcare being rated on a par with financial compensation, quality of life, housing security and the local environment.
More broadly, health benefit trends noted in the study included:
- Access to healthcare anywhere, including the US, remains the number-one concern among expats in 2015, followed closely by emergency medical evacuation.
- Quick turnaround on out-of-pocket claims became slightly more important than coverage of dependants on the same plan as employees.
“Expats located in Asia report reduced services from 2013,” said the study, “except for emergency medical evacuation, access to medical personnel for questions and counselling. Those on assignment in Europe and the Middle East report significantly reduced services across the board. The same is true for those in sub-Saharan Africa, except for dependent coverage. The Americas are a mixed bag. Since 2013, expats in Central America report a sharp uptick in nearly all services. Services are relatively stable for those in South America, except for emergency medical evaluation and claims reimbursement turnaround. In North America, respondents report significantly greater access to medical consultation and mental health services.”
Other notable figures from Cigna’s study include the fact that the proportion of expat households accessing medical care while on assignment has remained consistent at 79 per cent (compared with 78 per cent in 2013), and a disparity between rates of men accessing care and women accessing care. “While the rate at which men accessed care stayed about the same (78 per cent in 2015 versus 77 per cent in 2013),” said the study, “the share of women accessing care rose five percentage points, to 83 per cent. Women were slightly less likely than men to seek care locally. However, for serious medical care, they were much more likely to seek treatment locally in 2013: 47 per cent then, compared with 38 per cent today.”