 "CignaTTK Health Insurance launches operations")
The company, which is the 53rd insurance company and a standalone health insurer, is looking to have five to ten differentiated products in its portfolio by December 2014.
Sandeep Patel, CEO and Managing Director, CignaTTK Health Insurance Company said that when Cigna Corporation began the process of entering India in 2010, they looked at various entities including banks.
"TTK was finally decided upon as a partner, due to their values and ethics gelling well with ours. Further, having been in the Third Party Administrator (TPA) business, we knew that TTK understood the aspects of healthcare," he said. . As capital investments are required. These were the key drivers.
CignaTTK is a stand-alone health insurance company having a pan India presence and is headquartered in Mumbai. The company has begun operations with its core mediclaim product, which Patel said has multiple tiers and multiple choices for different categories and segments of consumers. Online sale of products will also be launched soon.
The company, said Patel will have six branches in the key metros by March. Post this, another 10 branches will be launched and they are looking to reach 25 branches by end of the year.
"There will be a multi-tier strategy and we are looking at leveraging TTK's sales infrastructure in Tier II locations," added Patel. CignaTTK is aiming to offer differentiated health insurance solutions including health and wellness programs that support customers in making lifestyle changes and managing chronic medical conditions.
CignaTTK, which got its license to operate in India in 13 months, is looking at a multi-channel distribution model, by using bank partnerships, non-banking finance companies, coupled with the use of analytics and digital (internet) channel. The company is in talks with banks for tie-ups. With respect to Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), Patel informed that while FDI was discussed at the time of the JV being formed, the foreign partner has decided to invest more when time (FDI is relaxed) comes.
With respect to the product mix, the company is looking at retail segment in the initial phases and will then shift to corporate segment as well. Patel said that they have also filed a global health product, especially for companies (like BPO firms) who send large number of people overseas.
Jason Sadler, President, Cigna Global Individual said, "Cigna is one of the leading health service companies in the world and operates in more than 31 countries. With more than 80 million customer relationships worldwide, we pride ourselves on our ability to provide products and services aligned with customer expectations of solutions that are easy to access, use, and deliver on their promise. We are delighted to partner with the TTK Group and look forward to bringing to Indian customers innovative health and wellness solutions."
CignaTTK has undertaken consumer research to understand the needs of Indian consumers. As a result of this research, CignaTTK has the insights needed to develop and launch innovative products and services aimed towards specific individual and family health needs, with processes that are easy to experience.
"Leveraging the strengths of TTK’s strong local market expertise with Cigna’s expertise in developing innovative products and services will help CignaTTK meet the needs of consumers, who are progressively realizing the importance of health insurance," said Patel.