New Hong Kong Insurance Product In Line With Globalsurance Forecast

HONG KONG, July 5, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- AXA, a leader in the global health insurance industry, has launched a new Medical Insurance plan in Hong Kong to compete with more traditional International medical insurance products currently existing in the local market, according to Globalsurance, an expert in the international insurance industry.

The plan from AXA is virtually unique in that it offers coverage for some pre-existing medical conditions without leveling a premium loading on the policyholder. In addition to the pre-existing condition coverage available, there will be two major variants of AXA's new products.

The Global Elite product will be available in both Comprehensive+Prestige and Standard formats, enabling prestige, high end cover and a more cost-effective, scaled down version of the protection. Both options are significantly higher in their scope of coverage than the existing, domestic Smart Medical plan available from AXA Hong Kong.

Globalsurance is of the opinion that the launch of this new policy will be widely welcomed in Hong Kong, due to the company's previous assessment of Hong Kong based expatriates choosing domestic medical protection rather than the formerly preferred international options.

Globalsurance has also noted that there are an increasing number of High Net Worth local residents in Hong Kong who are moving in the opposite direction of the city's expat populace and seeking more comprehensive coverage than the fairly basic options afforded to them domestically.

The move by AXA to deploy a new product, especially in the wake of AVIVA's exit from the Hong Kong medical insurance market, may fulfill a need for a more middle of the road policy offering as being seen by local market trends which have been previously noted by Globalsurance's analysts.

Additionally, Globalsurance is forecasting significant changes in the Hong Kong healthcare landscape over the coming years; in no small part due to the HKSAR Government's proposal to offload the provision of basic healthcare services to the private sector.

Despite the exit of major international providers, such as AVIVA, due to unsustainable products, the Hong Kong health insurance market is seeing increased levels of competition year-on-year. As such, in line with Globalsurance's analysis of the market, the move by AXA to provide a more flexible policy offering comes at just the right time.

http://www.globalsurance.com

SOURCE Globalsurance.com