Claims for heart ailments witness a 61% upsurge over last three years: SBI data

Mumbai: As per the data by SBI General Insurance, the number of claims made by the age group of 45 to 55 years for heart and related ailments has increased by 61% from FY 15-16 to FY 17-18, and the total claim amount paid for these claims has seen an upsurge of 79% for the same age group, for the commensurate period.

The data further reveals that there has been a substantial increase in the claims paid amount for cardiovascular diseases for the age group of 60 to 65 years from 15.3% to 22.5% between FY 15-16 and FY 17-18. For the same age group, the data indicates an escalation in the number of claims made over the three years, from 10.6% to 18.9%. This gradual but significant increase in the number of claims points to an increase in the incidence of cardiovascular diseases in people of age 45 and above.

 The claim amount for cardiovascular and related diseases has increased from 10.4% to 11% from FY 15-16 to FY17-18, which indicates an increase in cost for claim settlement for cardiovascular diseases over the years.

A higher percentage of claims were made by men as compared to women for all three years, with 68.8% claims made in FY 17-18. However, women below the age group of 50-55 years are typically less prone to cardiac ailments due to natural physiological functions of their hormones, and are likely to develop Cardiac ailments at a later age, post menopause.

Majority of claims for cardiovascular diseases are reported from metro cities, seeing an increase from 56.5% in FY 15-16 to 62.4% in FY 17-18. Metro cities tend to have organised infrastructure and availability of expert doctors, which could be a reason for the higher percentage of claims settled from these cities.

Maharashtra tops the list of states with 24.1% claims made and 26.9% total claim amount for cardiac ailments for FY 17-18.

Kerala witnessed a significant drop in the percentage of claims made between FY 15-16 and FY 17-18 from 18% to 6.3%. The paid amount has also decreased for this state over the three years.

Mr Sukhesh Bhave, Head- Accident & Health Claims, SBI General Insurance said, “At SBI General Insurance, we are constantly studying our claims data to equip ourselves with adequate understanding of our customers. With the help of this claims data study, we also aim to educate our customers on the rising health issues that are affecting the masses. Our data points to a substantial increase in claims for ages 45 to 55, which is the age group that largely undergoes work stress and follows a sedentary lifestyle. It is important to follow a healthy diet and exercise regularly to avoid suffering from such ailments.”

“It has always been SBI General’s endeavor to promote a healthy lifestyle among its customers. Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death in the world and hence, need to be addressed, so as to spread awareness on the significance of the disease as well as how one can keep these ailments at bay,”  he added.