Meritz Fire & Marine Insurance Obtains Exclusive Rights for '7 Major Organ Transplant Registration Waiting Coverage'

[Asia Economy Reporter Changhwan Lee] Meritz Fire & Marine Insurance announced on the 9th that it has obtained a 6-month exclusive usage right for the ‘7 Major Organ Transplant Registration Waiting Coverage’.

The ‘7 Major Organ Transplant Registration Waiting Coverage’ is a rider that provides immediate coverage of up to 10 million KRW if the insured is registered as a waiting recipient for transplantation of one of the seven major organs (kidney, liver, heart, pancreas, lung, hematopoietic stem cells, eye) due to injury or illness occurring during the insurance period.

Unlike existing organ transplant surgery-related riders sold in the insurance industry, which only provide coverage upon receiving the transplant surgery, this coverage provides immediate protection upon registration as a transplant waiting recipient. Therefore, it offers support for treatments necessary for survival during the waiting period, such as alternative treatments, life-sustaining treatments, and complication treatments.

A ‘transplant registration waiting recipient’ refers to a person registered with a registration institution under the Ministry of Health and Welfare according to the Organ Transplant Act (currently the Korea Network for Organ Sharing, KONOS) to receive an organ transplant from another person for the purpose of restoring organ function.

According to statistics, the number of transplant registration waiting recipients has been increasing annually. Based on the seven major organs, the number rose from 21,833 in 2011 to 45,776 in 2021, approximately a 2.1-fold increase over 10 years.

On the other hand, only 4,387 people underwent transplantation surgery for the seven major organs in 2021, accounting for just 9.6% of the transplant registration waiting recipients. Additionally, the average waiting period for transplant surgery among waiting recipients remains long at 1,850 days (about 5 years or more).

A Meritz Fire & Marine Insurance official explained, “We have developed the industry’s first coverage for the ‘transplant waiting state,’ which is between irreversible organ failure and organ transplant surgery.” He added, “The main purpose of developing this rider is to contribute to the actual improvement of national survival rates by helping patients safely reach from alternative treatments to transplant surgery.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.