60,000 COVID-19 Recoverees... Told to Wait One More Year to Get Insurance? (Comprehensive)

[Image source=Yonhap News]

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[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Hyung-gil] Choi Seon-jin (33, pseudonym), who tested positive for the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), was recently declared fully recovered after two weeks of treatment. Concerned about possible aftereffects, Choi inquired about insurance enrollment with an insurance company but was told that even after recovering from COVID-19, one cannot enroll in insurance for one year.

He said, "I was asymptomatic and physically fine, so I don't understand why I can't get insurance," and complained, "Shouldn't there be consideration for those who need insurance more than anyone else?"

People who have been infected with COVID-19 and recovered are suffering twice?both from aftereffects and harsh public perception, as well as being denied insurance enrollment. Although there are about 60,000 COVID-19 recoverees, insurance companies refuse to accept applications based on strict underwriting standards.

According to health authorities and the insurance industry on the 22nd, COVID-19 was classified as a new infectious disease under the first-class infectious diseases category in February last year. First-class infectious diseases are recognized as disasters, allowing for death benefits or hospitalization insurance payments under insurance policies that cover disasters.

However, domestic insurance companies have yet to establish official underwriting criteria for COVID-19. Since COVID-19 is a type of pneumonia, most insurers exclude coverage for pulmonary diseases as well as bronchial diseases.

For asymptomatic COVID-19 patients, insurance enrollment is possible three months after recovery, while for severe cases, conditional enrollment may be allowed depending on complications or treatment methods. Some small and medium-sized companies are known to have guidelines that prohibit insurance enrollment for at least one year after a COVID-19 recovery diagnosis.

On the 21st, market merchants are undergoing COVID-19 diagnostic tests at a temporary walk-in screening clinic set up in Namdaemun Market, Jung-gu, Seoul. Jung-gu explained, "Since it is difficult for merchants to leave their shops during business hours due to sales and other operations, we collaborated with Seoul City to establish a testing site inside the market for merchants who cannot visit screening clinics." Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

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Insurance companies explain that even after a COVID-19 recovery diagnosis, unexpected aftereffects may occur, making insurance enrollment inevitably difficult.

According to interim clinical aftereffect research results on COVID-19 released by the Central Disease Control Headquarters, symptoms such as hair loss and shortness of breath during exercise were relatively common three months after recovery, and fatigue tended to be higher after six months.

Partial lung inflammation remained in some cases, and some patients developed fibrosis, where the lungs gradually harden and their function declines. In the UK, about one in three recovered patients were readmitted within five months due to severe aftereffects.

A survey by the National Respiratory Medicine Center of China found that 76% of COVID-19 recoverees complained of fatigue, sleep disorders, and lung function impairment even six months later,

and a study by the University of Edinburgh in the UK showed that 55% of COVID-19 recoverees reported heart abnormalities.

An insurance industry official explained, "We do not specifically reject insurance enrollment for COVID-19 recoverees," adding, "Generally, if there is a history of past illness, we review whether the person has been hospitalized or undergone surgery within a certain period before conducting underwriting."

Meanwhile, on the same day, 346 new domestic COVID-19 cases were reported, marking a return to the 300s after three days. Notably, the number dropping to the mid-300s is the first time in two months since November last year.

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