Spotlight: Schizophrenia

"The shorter the period since stabilisation, the more severe will be likely terms offered"

clock • 5 min read

Vitality's John Downes examines the history, variations, symptoms and underwriting considerations of schizophrenia.

This week saw Schizophrenia Awareness Day in the UK (25 July) and a good opportunity to have a closer look at this complex condition from an underwriting and claims point of view. Schizophrenia is a mental health condition which affects the way in which an individual perceives reality. The condition usually starts in late adolescence or early adulthood, but it can occur earlier. In the general population, UK incidence is about 1%. The name schizophrenia comes from the Greek ‘skhizein' meaning to ‘split' and ‘phrenos' meaning ‘mind'. Owing to the word's origins, there is a popular misc...

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