SA Group Life Insurance under Pressure from AIDS

October 25 - A new report on the situation of HIV/AIDS in South Africa shows that the group life insurance industry is under immense pressure due to the growing number of employable-aged people suffering from the disease.

According to the United Nations Country Progress Report, 5.7 million were living with AIDS in South Africa by 2009.

41% of those people who died from AIDS during 2006 were in the 25 - 49 year old bracket, says the report.

As such, the report shows that "this is a strong indicator that AIDS is a major, if not the principal, factor in the overall rising number of deaths" in the country.

So how has this impacted the industrial industry?

With so many work-aged people claiming insurance payouts due to AIDS related ailments, or death, group life insurance policies are buckling under the pressure.

In 2010, alone, insurers have had to pay out R2.4 billion in claims so far.

This means that insurers have no choice but to put up the price of premiums.

One million people in South Africa are receiving antiretroviral drugs from the state but the government is not the only entity involved in the fight against AIDS.

Industrial firms regularly put their employees through voluntary counseling and testing, while many run HIV/AIDS disease management programs.

Many insurance groups have developed unique AIDS insurance products as a result of the situation.