From New Medical Technologies to Infertility Care for Women... More Tailored Coverage Boosts Customer Satisfaction

Lotte Insurance Adds Cancer Treatment Coverage for New Medical Technologies
Hanwha General Insurance Wins Praise for Women-Specific Infertility and Life-Cycle Coverage
Experts: "More Detailed Coverage Means Greater Premium Savings"

Non-life insurers are refining coverage for major diseases, including cancer, brain disorders and heart conditions. They are expanding their business by adding coverage for recently introduced new medical technologies, as well as coverage designed specifically for female customers, including infertility treatment.

A feature sketch on infertility: Cha Fertility Center Seoul Station. Photo by Cho Yongjun jun21@

According to the insurance industry on Oct. 29, recently launched insurance products continue to cover established areas such as cancer, health, caregiving, women's health and children, while offering increasingly detailed coverage. Insurers are rolling out a series of products tailored to specific genders and age groups, drawing a positive response from consumers.

One example is new coverage introduced by Lotte Insurance, focusing on the high cost of cancer treatment. Lotte Insurance recently added a "comprehensive cancer treatment benefit for non-covered services" to its major health insurance products. The coverage reflects the sharp rise in the cost of treatments involving new medical technologies and provides up to 200 million won a year for comprehensive cancer treatment using non-covered services. The latest robotic surgeries, including Da Vinci and Revo-i, are covered up to 40 million won per procedure.

Also attracting attention is Lotte Insurance's tailored coverage for non-covered services, in line with changes to indemnity health insurance that are reducing coverage for such services. Its "Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment Benefit" combines a cancer diagnosis benefit with coverage for non-covered treatment costs. The diagnosis benefit is paid according to the insured amount, while the combined coverage for non-covered treatment costs brings the annual maximum to 50 million won.

Hanwha General Insurance's Hanwha Signature Women's Health Insurance, which includes support for infertility treatment and cancer diagnosis benefits specifically for women, is also gaining popularity. The company has been launching related products one after another since July 2023. The products offer a range of coverage tailored to women's life cycles, including a "Comprehensive Women's Cancer Diagnosis Benefit," an "Infertility Care Package" and a "Discount for Accident-Free Policyholders."

Other representative products that have refined their coverage and improved customer satisfaction include Hyundai Marine & Fire Insurance's "My Body N Customized Simple Health Insurance," which helps customers with a history of cancer or only a history of brain or heart disease avoid unnecessary premium costs; NH NongHyup Property & Casualty Insurance's "NH All Wonderful 365 Caregiver Insurance," which is available to people with pre-existing conditions; and Meritz Fire & Marine Insurance's "My Mom-Like Children's Insurance," which waives premium payments if an accident or illness results in a disability of 50% or greater.

Meritz Fire & Marine Insurance's children's insurance product also includes premium discounts and payment deferrals, taking into account parental leave and other childcare needs. If the policyholder or their spouse gives birth or is on parental leave, they can apply for a premium discount of up to 3% for one year. Repayment of interest on policy loans can also be deferred for up to one year. The same deferrals for premium payments and policy loan interest are available for up to one year to customers with other personal insurance policies that provide general coverage, as well as children's insurance. These benefits also apply to households where a parent has reduced working hours to care for a child. Customers who are within one year of a child's birth or are on parental leave or working reduced hours can apply through a customer service center or branch.

Experts say that the more precisely non-life insurers define their coverage, the greater the potential savings on premiums for policyholders. In the past, someone seeking coverage for heart disease alone might have had to take out a comprehensive health insurance policy costing around 10,000 won a month that bundled in other diseases as well. Now, they can choose a dedicated heart insurance policy for around 1,000 won instead.

"When insurers offer specialized, detailed products focused on the coverage customers actually need, they can prevent customers from taking out unnecessary coverage and help them save on premiums," said Kim Yongha, an emeritus professor in the Department of IT Finance and Management at Soonchunhyang University. "However, for recently emerging specialized products, such as those covering new medical technologies or tailored to women, insurers and financial authorities need to establish clear standards requiring policy terms to clearly disclose exclusions. This would further strengthen customer trust."

"The move by non-life insurers to offer more specialized products focused on third-sector insurance covering illness, injury and caregiving is positive, as it responds to an aging population, advances in medical technology and consumers' diverse coverage needs," said Lee Juyeol, a professor in the Department of Health Administration at Namseoul University. "Insurers must provide sufficient information on the scope of coverage, conditions for insurance payouts, exclusions and benefit reductions, and whether policies are renewable. Financial authorities should also standardize the criteria for comparative disclosures on similar coverage."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.