Think Tank: More work needed to improve claims management through rehabilitation
ncome protection (IP) products need a rewrite if rehabilitation is to be an effective claims management tool, according to the latest COVER Think Tank.
Guests at the roundtable debate, which discussed the role of rehabilitation in the protection market, called for shorter rehabilitation deferment periods and changes to current definitions of incapacity.
Esther McCallum, manager of rehabilitation services at UnumProvident, said services should kick in earlier to speed up getting claimants back to work. "When the referral comes through claimants might have been off work for a year and a half. The chances of them getting back to work are very slim. For an effective programme there has to be early intervention," she said.
Commenting on group IP schemes, Helen Merfield, managing director of Health and Case Management Limited, said shorter deferment periods should be made standard. "Income protection needs a rewrite and it should be compulsory for employers to notify insurers at the earliest opportunity - maybe at a four-week period. That's not happening. Often the psychological damage that happens to people when they are off work hasn't been recognised or addressed," she said.
Speakers at the debate, which was sponsored by FirstAssist and attended by representatives from the Government, insurers and case managers, agreed that many problems begin with employers not being proactive in informing insurers when staff first fall ill.
"We need to understand the fundamental problem," said Tim Ablett, chief executive of FirstAssist. "It's not just the cost of these issues, it's about starting to implement them culturally within an organisation."
Richard Walsh, head of health at the Association of British Insurers, said current incapacity definitions did not encourage rehabilitation-focussed products. "The gold standard product is the one that covers you for 'own occupation', which precludes rehabilitation," he said.
Merfield suggested more flexible definitions should be introduced: "Couldn't there be a clause that says 'same occupation for six months'? After 12 months it could provide if they have to choose another occupation," she said.
• A full report of Think Tank is included free with this issue.
