Son Byung-du, Vice Chairman of the Financial Services Commission, is delivering opening remarks at the '3rd Digital Finance Council' held on the 21st at Front1 in Mapo-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@
[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Hyung-gil] Sohn Byung-doo, Vice Chairman of the Financial Services Commission, expressed strong determination to simplify the claims process for indemnity health insurance.
On the 27th, in a congratulatory speech at the 'Indemnity Insurance System Improvement Public Hearing' held online by the Insurance Research Institute, Vice Chairman Sohn said, "In the era of the 4th Industrial Revolution, it is shameful that a country like ours, where information technology (IT) is highly developed, cannot automatically send medical expense proof documents for insurance claims electronically, and instead must issue paper documents and submit them to insurance companies."
He continued, "Currently, multiple amendments to the Insurance Business Act mandating the computerization of indemnity health insurance claims have been proposed in the 21st National Assembly. We will actively discuss and negotiate with various stakeholders, including the medical community, to ensure that the bill is legislated promptly."
Although indemnity insurance is called the second national health insurance, with two-thirds of the nation enrolled, the cumbersome claims process often leads to claim abandonment.
As of 2018, 76% of the 90 million annual indemnity insurance claims were made via fax, delivery through insurance planners, or visits to insurance agencies. The remaining 24% submitted paper documents via email or insurance company applications (apps). Even in these cases, insurance company staff must manually enter the documents into the computer system.
By simplifying indemnity insurance claims, subscribers will be able to easily claim insurance money through an application (app) without submitting separate documents after receiving treatment at hospitals or pharmacies.
Although financial authorities, the insurance industry, and civic groups are pushing for the simplification of indemnity insurance claims, progress has stalled since 2009 due to opposition from the medical community over concerns such as personal information leakage.
In the 20th National Assembly, two amendments to the Insurance Business Act aimed at establishing a foundation for the computerization of indemnity insurance claims were proposed, but they were never discussed in the bill review subcommittee and were automatically discarded due to the expiration of the National Assembly's term.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
