Regular exercise can help people live a healthier life while also lowering claims costs, according to data from Vitality.
According to a study of Vitality health insurance claims from 2017 to 2021, even a small quantity of regular exercise can lower the average cost per claim for members who need hospital treatment.
The analysis examines Vitality members’ claims for in-hospital and out-of-hospital musculoskeletal, cancer, and cardiovascular therapy, showing that the more active Vitality members were, the lower their claims costs.
Members who regularly engaged in physical activity had a significant reduction in claim costs, with a reduction of 31 per cent for musculoskeletal claims, 37 per cent for cancer claims, and 46 per cent for cardiovascular claims when compared to those who did not record activity.
The information comes from Vitality’s upcoming Health Claims Insights report, which will be released in full at a special Business Update event on June 8th.
The statistics also included information on the pandemic’s impact and the closure of gyms. Members of Vitality discovered that digital workouts at home, provided as part of their Vitality membership, allowed them to maintain similar levels of physical activity to what they were doing prior to the epidemic. In 2021, compared to 2019, the pandemic appeared to influence the types of activities people undertook, with a 49 per cent increase in cardio sessions.
VitalityHealth managing director Dr Keith Klintworth says: “It is clear from our data that even a moderate amount of regular activity can have a large impact on health outcomes.
“This new data highlights how important keeping active is to our health and shows why our shared value approach to insurance, which incentivises and rewards people who make positive lifestyle choices, alongside providing high quality insurance products, is ever more relevant.”