Insurer incentive to shed pounds

Overweight can cash in on weight loss

As private health insurers struggle with growing claims for hospital treatment for obesity such as laparoscopic gastric band surgery, insurers in Australia are giving cash bonuses to overweight people to encourage them to lose weight. Overweight individuals can receive up to Aus$350 in a bid to encourage them to shed excess fat without resorting to surgery. Australian Unity rewards its members with Aus$100 for signing up to weight-loss programmes such as Jenny Craig and Weight Watchers, and another Aus$100 when they reach their target weight. They then receive Aus$150 more if they stay within 5kg of their target for a year.

Other health insurers are giving reductions on the price of gym memberships, diet drugs and low-calorie meal replacement products. Some health insurers including HCF, NIB and HBA are offering health ‘coaching’, where members can receive nutrition and exercise plans from nurses and dietitians. The initiatives by health insurers is part of a growing movement by insurers towards preventive health coverage as opposed to treatment as they cope with more customers affected by chronic diseases linked to obesity, alcohol abuse and smoking – for example, Discovery recently presented the results of its Vitality programme of incentives at the OxHA summit (run by C3). You can download the presentation from this page: here >>

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Source: Sydney Morning Herald, 25 April 2010.

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