Healthcare spending in Asia and Australasia is expected to grow at a CAGR of 5% to top US$1.96 trillion by 2020, up from $1.54 trillion in 2015. Globally, this spending is expected to reach $8.7 trillion by 2020, from $7 trillion in 2015, according to Deloitte’s 2018 Global Health Care Outlook.
As has been the case for the past several years, spending is expected to be driven by ageing and growing populations, developing market expansion, clinical and technology advances, and rising labour costs, exacerbated by intense competition for healthcare workers.
Further, rapid urbanisation, sedentary lifestyles, changing diets, and rising obesity levels are fuelling an increase in chronic diseases—most prominently, cancer, heart disease, and diabetes – even in developing markets. China and India have the largest number of diabetes sufferers in the world, at around 114 million and 69 million, respectively.
Help with latest technology
The upside to this however, is with the latest technology, individuals are better and faster informed about their health and wellness, and are willing to take actions needed to take to stay energised and healthy.
Similarly, insurers are rising rapidly to these challenges and opportunities with some taking the lead to position insurance as an enabler, helping people to stay healthy longer. But with the emergence of disruptors, such as peer-to-peer insurance, changing nature of both customer behaviours and risks to be insured, how should market players respond?
Asia Insurance Review’s Healthcare Insurance Conference 2018 will seek to explore how insurers can keep up with the ever-changing environment. Themed “Health Insurance at the Crossroads: Leading the Market with Healthcare on Demand”, discussions will focus on strategic options for both insurers and reinsurers; the dynamism that insurers bring to the healthcare and health benefits market in the digital era; the changing role of governments, employers, insurers and healthcare providers and pharmaceuticals; and the way forward.
The two-day conference event will also cover new frontiers including genetics, wearables and digital healthcare; the latest trends and developments in health care around the region and the world; and how to transform from a traditional insurer to a connected health insurer, among others.
Do sign up for Asia Conference on Healthcare and Health Insurance to be held from 20-21 March in Singapore at