Circa 2000, Insurance was privatised in India. It was promised to be the sunrise industry. There were many Doctors with decades of experience in insurance industry and they were absorbed in private sector. Even fresh medical graduates were joining insurance as the scenario was very satisfying, holding great promise for future. The industry never felt the shortage of medical professionals. They were available aplenty.
Come Global Financial Crisis of 2008-2009, which also hit the Indian insurance industry adversely – the sunrise industry lost its charm forcing several doctors to quit the industry and shift to medical practice. What was noteworthy, was new entries of medicos totally stopped. With those already in the industry, reaching top positions, an acute shortage of CMOs for transactional work was felt by the industry.
One may ask, why is a CMO so important for insurance industry?
Although the insurance industry is clubbed with financial sector – several verticals of insurance (viz. life, health, accident, Critical Illness, Motor 3rd party, disability etc) are actually insuring the human body and its potential morbidity and mortality. And I am certain, all will agree, you cannot keep a medico out!
A CMO is specifically needed for the following:
– Interpretation of lab, ECG, TMT, 2-D Echo, USG and other reports with regards to the concerned policy and sum assured; more so reports that are borderline.
– Neither internal nor reinsurer guidelines cover all types of disclosures in the proposal form. Add to that for any disclosure what may be the mortality risk (life insurance) and risk of repeat hospitalisation (health insurance)?
– Medical underwriting
– Underwriting at claims stage – if a particular information was known at inception, what may have been the response/ reaction/ decision?
– Admissibility at claims stage
– Inputs at grievance stage
– Support, if the declined case is at a legal forum
– Quasi medical training of non-medicos in insurance
We at INCHES, offer an army of CMOs – generalists, specialists and super specialists who have been specifically empowered with insurance insights and many have gathered years of insurance experience as well.
Most of them continue medical practice as well, since medicine is changing almost by the minute.
The team is backed by a knowledge repository of videos, definitions and over 1,70,000 FAQs organised system and sub system wise.
The team is constantly getting inputs from senior members in real time. The team has handled over one million transactions.
If you ever need Virtual CMOs for any work – INCHES is available – 24*7*365.
