Insurers must safeguard against growing sexual health threat
Demands have been made for a working party dedicated to safeguarding the insurance industry from the rising threat of sexually transmitted infections (STI) in the UK.
Chris Morgan, editor of pinkfinance.com has put forward the suggestion in his response to the Association of British Insurers' (ABI) consultation on the statement of best practice for HIV and Insurance.
In his formal response to the ABI, Morgan outlined details for a select committee to assess and monitor sexual behaviour and the impact it may have on the UK insurance industry.
"Within the next three years, I would like to see the formation of a new working group committed to protecting the insurance industry from the risk of irresponsible sexual behaviour and dedicated to the promotion of 'self responsibility' across all risk groups," he said.
The aim of the consultation exercise is to develop a statement of best practice for HIV and Insurance, which better reflects the way the disease is developing in the UK. While Morgan is hoping his proposals will improve the way gay men are treated when applying for protection, he is adamant the industry needs to pay greater attention to the growing threat of other STIs.
"I am currently conducting an investigation into hepatitis, because I believe that there are similarities between this disease and HIV. Hepatitis appears to be another unchecked risk that can seriously affect the future risk profile of the industry," he said.
Morgan has also criticised proposals in the draft guidelines that suggest the use of 'civil partnership' as criteria for judging the risk of HIV infection among gay men.
"I can not accept standardised rates for gay people under the term civil partnership when statistics show that people in a relationship are at a higher risk to HIV infection than a single gay male, because a single male can take responsibility for his own behaviour," he said.
