Health prevention: What can the insurance industry do?

There is an increasing awareness of the relationship between well-being and health prevention: the more preventive care is available, the more health improves and, with it, quality of life. Can the insurance industry do anything in this area? These stakeholders are already a key player in promoting effective strategies to combat diseases and improve well-being.

We're currently experiencing a strange paradox: according to data from the World Health Organization (WHO), 2023 was a record year in disease eradication; however, chronic diseases such as cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular conditions continue to be the leading causes of mortality worldwide. In this context, the insurance industry plays a key role by promoting preventive and early detection measures that can reduce both the incidence and impact of these diseases on society.

Health prevention is fundamental to improving people's quality of life and is crucial to maintaining the long-term efficiency of health systems. The 77th World Health Assembly highlighted the importance of facilitating equitable access to disease prevention, diagnosis and treatment, with a special focus on cardiovascular diseases, which represent one of the main threats to public health worldwide. The resolutions presented emphasized the need to establish comprehensive programs ranging from health education to early intervention, and it was clear there was international, collective consensus on the importance of a preventive approach to health management.

Increasing social awareness of wellness and shrinking operating margins for health providers are driving the growth of preventive health services. At $320 billion in size, the preventive health market (both digital and non-digital) is expected to grow 7.8% annually, up to nearly $559 billion by 2028.

Technological advances have made countless devices available to patients for self-monitoring, whether for medical, sports or wellness purposes. In the area of consumer electronics, many users are interested in knowing their activity and health metrics. At the same time, advances in genetics have shifted from scientific use to consumer health, making molecular tests and genetic analyses available to the average citizen, who can find out their propensity to certain diseases, know their sensitivity to certain substances and change their habits.

These advances provide people with the tools to have more knowledge and control over their well-being, empowering them and making them an active part of prevention and the path to better health.

The WHO reports that chronic diseases are responsible for 74% of all deaths worldwide. In addition, 80% of these diseases, including strokes, type 2 diabetes and heart disease, can be prevented through lifestyle changes. Public awareness is essential in this context for preventing disease and adopting better habits, and insurance companies are indispensable for going even further.

If we focus on the business context, health prevention is not only essential to reduce absenteeism and increase productivity, but also to promote a healthy and sustainable work environment. For example, Savia, the MAPFRE digital health platform, not only offers a reactive approach to disease treatment, but also promotes a proactive health culture, allowing companies to anticipate possible health problems with their employees and act preventively, always with the objective of promoting a healthy environment.

“Two factors come together here. First, people, especially in generations such as Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z, are increasingly concerned about their health and want to monitor it practically in real time, at least the most basic data, such as heart rate. Furthermore, insurance companies have an immense opportunity to offer personalized suggestions to our users that can improve their lifestyle. All of this means that we are in the perfect context to promote preventive health on different fronts,” said Pedro Díaz Yuste, CEO of Savia.

The insurance industry is fully immersed in “wellcare:” the convergence of healthcare and well-being. Coverage is expanding and improving to gradually integrate mental health and telemedicine into their offering, as well as new technologies and devices that are focused on streamlining patient diagnosis and monitoring, and on preventing and raising awareness about certain diseases.

Insurance companies are offering their policyholders applications to suggest diagnoses for simple medical conditions and wearables so that patients can manage their own well-being. For example, in the MAPFRE Salud application there is a “Symptom Evaluator” option that offers diagnostic guidance through AI based on a series of questions about the person’s health status and their ailments; although it is true that it cannot replace medical criteria, it helps patients get a better idea of their health status and to act accordingly.

In fact, AI and data analytics capabilities are offering a wide range of opportunities for healthcare personalization and prevention thanks to their capacity to process mass amounts of data. With this data, machine learning systems can perform personalized diagnostics and evaluations with a very low margin of error.

For example, algorithms can identify patterns in patient data that could go unnoticed by health professionals, facilitating the early detection of diseases such as cancer or cardiovascular diseases. They can also analyze trends in the health of policyholders to recommend better habits in their daily lives. By bringing together algorithms and wearables, health programs can be much richer for people.

“Health is no longer viewed as a closed cycle in which professionals only act if an illness is identified. In the society in which we live, it is more important than ever to curb the chronification of disease and to act preventively; therefore, insurers are making a conscious effort in physical and mental health prevention initiatives,” stated Pedro Díaz Yuste. “At Savia, for example, we offer 360° health services where prevention is one of our three pillars through remote monitoring services, digital health solutions at any time, and tools to manage any day-to-day concerns,” he added.

The venture capital environment has been injecting liquidity into the health sector for years due to its clear economic and social potential. Few private equity funds or investors want to miss out on a digital health market that is expected to reach 426 billion dollars in 2027 and a market value of over 981.5 billion dollars by 2032.

Technology players and new digital capabilities have burst into this sector, leading to the specialization of the ecosystem. Startups begin with a very specific solution and, as in other sectors, in the years prior to the pandemic they mostly opted to integrate themselves into broader value propositions through partnerships, as direct marketing requires a greater effort and they preferred to allocate those resources to technology development. However, in the last two years this approach has changed: the rise of telemedicine and investors' interest in the sector has cleared the way for the proliferation of B2C models.

Within these startups, there are more and more companies focused on prevention, creating value from data. In a highly competitive market such as health, the creation of multidirectional partnerships is an increasingly widespread practice: a new agent can reach a greater number of consumers or patients with its offer, and traditional companies, such as insurers, can offer their policyholders greater added value in their policies and services with greater agility.

“The partnerships between insurtechs focused on health and insurance companies offer more value than ever in terms of prevention. When it comes to people's lives and health, acting quickly and offering not only prevention services, but specific programs for each person, is essential. This is achieved through open innovation strategies and forging alliances that add value to all parties: startups, multinationals and, of course, people,”, says Carlos Cendra, Scouting & Investment Lead at MAPFRE Open Innovation.

For example, Savia has established a strategic partnership with Wellwo, a startup specialized in corporate well-being, to expand its range of preventive services aimed at companies. This partnership allows Savia to integrate Wellwo’s experience into mental health, emotional well-being, and physical activity programs, creating a more comprehensive value proposition for companies seeking to improve their employees’ health.

Another Savia collaboration in the field of health is with Mediktor, an artificial intelligence platform specialized in evaluating symptoms, to improve its capacity for preventive diagnosis and early intervention in the business environment. This integration allows Savia to offer companies a digital health tool that can be used at any time, facilitating the early detection of possible conditions and improving the user experience with quick, personalized responses.

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