Health impairments and (re)insurance claims arising from obesity
Overweight and obesity are on the rise in many countries. Health policy measures have so far failed to curb the problem.
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Obesity is defined as an excessively high amount of body fat or adipose tissue in relation to lean body mass. Another definition describes obesity more simply as an excess of body fat that may result in a significant impairment of health.
A global health problem
In the past decades, obesity has become a massive health problem for children and adults alike in many countries. Starting in the United States, the problem spread to Europe, Australia and even to parts of Asia, especially China. Once considered an issue only in richer countries, overweight and obesity are now dramatically on the rise in low- and middle-income countries. These countries are now fighting battles on various health fronts. While they continue to deal with problems of infectious disease and under-nutrition, at the same time they are experiencing a rapid upsurge in chronic disease risk factors such as obesity and overweight, particularly in urban settings.
Worldwide obesity rates (BMI > 30) have seen a sharp increase from 3.2% in 1975 to 10.8% in 2014 for men and from 6.4% to 14.9% for women. For 2025, it is expected that 20% of adults worldwide are obese (men 18%, women 21%). This will have enormous implications for global health. According to the WHO, a high BMI will boost the numbers of non-communicable diseases like diabetes, stroke, myocardial infarction, musculoskeletal disorders and cancer.
Lawsuits – not only life &health affected
These developments entail a considerable risk for (re)insurers and may lead to a variety of claims in different areas. Relevant areas include:
- Food, restaurant and beverage industry
- Pharmaceutical industry
- Chemical industry
- Health insurance
Lawsuits could be launched against members of the food, beverage and restaurant industry claiming that consumers' obesity and its related health problems are the result of various defendants' misconduct. Among other things, plaintiffs could claim that misinformation, deceptive advertising and/or mislabelling led to an "over-consumption" of products, resulting in them becoming obese and acquiring all kinds of related health problems. Also, consumers could claim that a certain ingredient or agent in a consumed product contributed to their obesity problems. Considering the substantial percentage of people suffering from obesity, such lawsuits may constitute a considerable liability risk for insurers.
New treatment approaches
As a result of the steadily growing obesity rates, drugs for weight reduction and appetite suppression have become more and more popular over the last decades. Weight reduction drugs have repeatedly been connected with serious side effects, interactions with other drugs and life-threatening complications. There is a high potential for off-label use in patients who suffer from bulimia. Several drugs were associated with severe heart complications (valvular damage, arrhythmias, heart failure).
For some time now, therapy with GLP-1 agonists has triggered a veritable hype. So far, however, experience has only been gained over a period of a few years. Therefore, statements on long-term prognoses are currently only possible to a limited extent.
Multimodal approaches required
Overweight and obesity have become one of the biggest global health problems. The number of people affected has been rising for decades. Whether health policy or medical interventions will get the problem under control remains to be seen. The (re)insurance industry has control instruments in the form of premiums and policies that can act as an incentive for an adjustment towards a healthy lifestyle.