Critical illness providers could be heading for an increase in claims following the ABI Critical Ill...
Critical illness providers could be heading for an increase in claims following the ABI Critical Illness Working Party's decision to issue a consultation paper suggesting the heart attack definition is changed, writes Kirstie Redford.
The consultation paper, due to be launched in the next few weeks, has been prompted by the increasing use of troponin tests to detect heart attacks. As it stands, the ABI's definition does not regard the test as evidence, meaning people cannot use it as proof of a heart attack.
Nick Kirwan, chairman of the ABI Critical Illness Working Party, said: 'One way of finding out whether an individual has had a heart attack is with a troponin test. This is being used more frequently as evidence to support a heart attack, yet the current definition does not include it. We feel there is a need to close this gap.'
Troponin is a chemical that is released into the bloodstream when heart muscle cells die and can be measured in a blood sample. Evidence of troponin alone is, however, not conclusive of a heart attack as the same chemical can also be released with conditions such as angina and acute coronary syndrome. This could mean critical illness providers could see an increase in claims not only as it is more effective, but also because cases such as angina may now fall into the heart attack definition.
Matt Rann, head of underwriting and claims at Scottish Equitable, said: 'The inclusion of troponin potentially means more claims will be paid that would not have otherwise been detected. But this depends on how a new definition includes troponin ' whether people would also have to give evidence of ECG tests, for example, to determine that it is a heart attack. It may also mean there will be more accelerated payouts due to conditions such as angina,' he said.
