Business Daily from THE HINDU group of publications
Friday, Nov 30, 2007
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version
Business Daily from THE HINDU group of publications Friday, Nov 30, 2007 ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version |
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Money & Banking
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General Insurance Industry & Economy - Health New IRDA norms soon for health insurers
Medicare concerns: (From left) Ms Shikha Sharma, MD & CEO, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Co. Ltd; Mr R.R. Shah, Member- Secretary, Planning Commission; Mr Habil Khorakiwala, FICCI, President; Mr C.S. Rao, Chairman, IRDA; and Mr Shivinder Mohan Singh, MD, Fortis Healthcare Ltd, at a conference on health insurance in the Capital on Thursday.– Our Bureau New Delhi, Nov. 29 The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) plans to soon come out with separate guidelines for health insurance players, aimed at comprehensive medical insurance coverage and redressal of consumer grievances. “To handle a plethora of issues relating to health insurance with focussed attention, a separate health unit has been set up in the Authority; specialised resources have been inducted to strengthen the role of IRDA in the development and better conduct of health insurance business,” Mr C.S. Rao, Chairman of IRDA, said at a conference organised by FICCI here on Thursday. He also said that to increase the penetration of health insurance in the country, the Authority has recommended to the Government to bring down the capital requirement for stand-alone health insurance companies from the present Rs 100 crore to Rs 50 crore. Mr Rao also said that the committee constituted to look into the problems faced by senior citizens had submitted its report. “We are in the process of examining the report and taking further action on the recommendations that have been proposed,” he added. The Authority, he said, had already taken steps towards standardising the definition of pre-existing diseases, which are now reflected in the health insurance products. “The General Insurance Council, consisting of all-non life insurers, is also working to build a consensus on the issue,” the IRDA Chairman said. The premium from health insurance products in non-life companies has grown from Rs 675 crore in 2001-02 to Rs 3,200 crore in 2006-07, while it has the potential to grow up to Rs 30,000 crore by 2015, Mr Rao added. Public spendingThe Member Secretary of the Planning Commission, Mr R.R. Shah, said that the public expenditure in the health sector would go up to two per cent of the GDP as against one per cent at the moment. “The Government is expected to raise budgetary support to Rs 1,36,000 crore for the health sector during the Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007-12). Also, 60 new medical colleges and 226 nursing colleges would be set up in the next five years apart from upgrading the 600 district level hospitals across the country,” Mr Shah said. More Stories on : General Insurance | Health | Regulatory Bodies & Rulings
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