Small firms get staff cover

A new health cover policy for employees is designed to cover a gap in the market, Accuro says.

Friday, January 30th 2015, 6:00AM

by Susan Edmunds

The health insurer has launched StaffSmart, a workplace health cover programme for employers at small businesses.

Kelleigh Aston, general manager of sales and marketing, said most staff products were offered for groups of more than 25 people.
StaffSmart covers 15 to 25.

“We get lots of requests from people saying there’s not enough competition in that up-to-25 space,” she said. “We thought, why don’t we create something?”

The plan is made up of a base plan that covers surgery, cancer treatment, major diagnostic procedures, private hospital admissions and treatments outside New Zealand.

Two option plans can then be added: Specialist Care, which covers specialist visits and testing, and Everyday Care, which covers GP visits, prescriptions and practice nurse visits.

It was a way for employers to offer health cover to employees as a benefit of working for the business, Accuro said.

Aston said that small businesses were not well catered for with staff plans.

The plan includes full underwriting but if staff stay with the company and the plan for three years, pre-existing conditions are removed from the policy.

“A lot of advisers have been asking for something of this type,” Aston said. “Particularly in small rural areas, in the South Island. Twenty-five is too high. Lots of advisers deal with smaller companies.”

She said Accuro had tried to keep the policy as simple and as similar to StaffCare, its policy for bigger firms, as possible.

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