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When Will Insurance Companies Discount Healthy Lifestyles
PhilipHerlitz
Posts: 1 Member
in Debate Club
With HealthKit and the android equivalent out there, when do you think an insurance company will start discounting health plans for individuals who pair HealthKit to their insurance app and maintain a healthy lifestyle. Car insurance companies do something similar by giving you a device to plug into your car to measure safe driving.
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Replies
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More likely to penalize poor habits. Can't you just sit on the couch drinking beer, eating chips, and watching TV while shaking your phone/Fitbit to get steps?4
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They're more in the business of stick than carrot.4
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I get plenty of emails about life insurance being cheaper for athletes...so I'm sure its coming1
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I don't exercise, but I'm healthy. I would pay more for not exercising? What markers would they use?
High cholesterol runs in my family. Will I have to take pills to keep it below 200? Some people have higher natural blood pressure readings.
Only thing acceptable would be BMI, which would motivate me. Many people argue BMI.
*African-Americans on average tend to have higher blood pressure and diabetes, so right there you fall into racism issues. http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/Conditions/HighBloodPressure/UnderstandSymptomsRisks/High-Blood-Pressure-and-African-Americans_UCM_301832_Article.jsp#.WYnu9vnyvIU2 -
Not soon enough.
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Well- I just joined a HealthShare instead of buying health insurance. I had to commit myself to a healthy lifestyle- there are lots of specifics depending on which one you join. The plan includes discounted gym membership, which I may check out. Also there is some sort of a plan for people without healthy lifestyles where they can get healthy. It's coming...1
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It's not quite the same, but my health insurance offers a rebate for gym membership. If you are a member of a gym for at least three months, you can apply for a 150 check to cover the costs.2
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Health insurance? Probably never. A lot of life insurance plans offer discounts for healthy living though...0
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How does any company know you are healthy? Exercising is not the tell-all.2
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My company gives an incentive if you get a health screening. I think you have to work on any health issues to keep it. I haven't bothered.4
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It's risk factors.
And you can get a discount under a workplace wellness program currently, although many people who have experienced them seem to be critical of them. (I have never had one available to me.)
The trend has been to limit the factors that can affect health insurance costs.0 -
So to get discounts, a company will have to give you a full health test including calculating BMI. The insurance will have to charge more for each item you do not pass. Then give discounts as the person meets their goals. Evaluations will be done yearly by a doctor.0
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Different wellness programs work in different ways.0
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Unlike other insurance products, I don't think health insurance companies in the US have that regulatory flexibility. Health insurance companies can't base premiums based on health or lifestyle status, other than tobacco use.
Paired wellness programs, separately funded, is not as regulated and has more innovative flexibility.2 -
My insurance carrier has a wellness program that awards points for "healthy" choices (going to the gym, linking a fitness tracker and hitting your steps, participating in athletic events, etc.) and biometric markers (BMI, blood pressure, glucose, etc.). Once you hit a certain number of points in that program, the employer receives a discount on that employee's insurance premium. I happen to work for a company that then passes along the totality of that discount to the employee (instead of splitting between what the employee pays and what the company pays). So, long story short, yes, there are already insurance carriers who do this.3
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Living a healthy life style does not mean you are healthy.4
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Why discount anything, when you can "up charge" the unhealthy $$$$$$$0
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Monkey_Business wrote: »Living a healthy life style does not mean you are healthy.
Of course not, there are so many things beyond our control. But it means you are doing what you can. Your are putting forth an effort to be healthy.2 -
So those with type II diabetes, high blood pressure, high BMI, high cholesterol, smokers will pay a heap of a lot more. But how much more?1
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Insurance companies don't give a crap as long as the bottom line is profit. So I'm thinking never because it cuts into their profit.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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Insurance companies don't give a crap as long as the bottom line is profit. So I'm thinking never because it cuts into their profit.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
But wouldn't having more healthy people* on the plan be likely to increase profits?
*I know healthy habits don't guarantee healthy people, but in a large population it is likely to make a difference.2 -
Need2Exerc1se wrote: »Insurance companies don't give a crap as long as the bottom line is profit. So I'm thinking never because it cuts into their profit.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
But wouldn't having more healthy people* on the plan be likely to increase profits?
*I know healthy habits don't guarantee healthy people, but in a large population it is likely to make a difference.
It would most likely take years for the impact of any incentives to be felt in the insurer's payout rates. The are concerned about the bottom line this quarter.1 -
TheWJordinWJordin wrote: »So those with type II diabetes, high blood pressure, high BMI, high cholesterol, smokers will pay a heap of a lot more. But how much more?
Our insurance already penalizes and off the top of my head I believe it's like an extra $500 a year in premiums or something along those lines. You're also penalized if you opt out of doing the mandatory biometric/smoking screening in the fall during open enrollment-that's a bigger fine, I think around $1,000 per person, (so if you and your spouse are both smokers you get hit with an extra $2,000 etc. They also offer all sorts of help to improve your numbers/quit smoking but I don't know what the the participation or success rates are for those programs).1 -
Need2Exerc1se wrote: »Insurance companies don't give a crap as long as the bottom line is profit. So I'm thinking never because it cuts into their profit.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
But wouldn't having more healthy people* on the plan be likely to increase profits?
*I know healthy habits don't guarantee healthy people, but in a large population it is likely to make a difference.
Yes, you would think.
Also, if it encourages people on the plan to make changes that minimize risk, that would be good for the insurance company.2 -
Insurance companies don't give a crap as long as the bottom line is profit. So I'm thinking never because it cuts into their profit.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
I agree about the profit motive. The real issue however is that unlike other types of insurance, health insurance is not driven by competition among consumers. Medicaid, Medicare, employer, VA, all health insurance that is group driven and that's probably 90% of the market.
You want to see a big shift in insurance? Give the same tax benefit to individual insurance as employees have and have employees instead provide cash or a voucher instead of a group plan.0 -
I earned back about $400 for engaging in healthy behaviors thru my insurance's incentive plan. Not sure if we'll ever seen an actual lowering in premiums for healthy lifestyles because that can change so quickly and they are so profit driven. Most people have very little choice in insurance.1
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My insurance company stated offering $20 rebates for attending a fitness center years ago. If course, they raised the rates on everyone by $20/ month at the same time. Interestingly, the Y also raised rates by $20/month at the same time. So regardless of whether you went to the gym or not, you got no real benefit and you pay more on premium. Pretty slick scam.
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Many companies are self-insured. That means that they could discriminate in order to save money. An HR manager could look at a person and say "hmmm, the insurance is going to charge us more for this person". Or not give us a discount.
It's already hard enough for big people to get jobs.
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Are you concerned about something happening different than it does now? I'm not really following.0
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You're right. Employers already see big people as "more expensive". nm.0
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