"Insurance covers the entire cost to pay for the sky-high price of anti-cancer miracle drugs" "Although CAR-T (chimeric antigen receptor T cell) immunotherapy is good, the high cost has also discouraged many patients"... With the 1.2 million injection Anti-cancer drugs have hit the market, and insurance companies have begun to promote related insurance.
CAR-T cell immunotherapy is on fire! Wang Meng (pseudonym), a senior insurance agent, told the Beijing News shell financial reporter: "Of the new orders opened this month, 95% of the customers came for this product. We don't sell it, we only give it away. , there is one insurance quota for a 10-year premium of 5,000 yuan, and 3 insurance quotas for a 10-year premium of 10,000 yuan. "
What kind of product is this? To simply understand, CAR-T cell immunotherapy insurance is a special drug insurance, and the insurance liability is mainly CAR-T cell immunotherapy insurance premiums. The Beijing News Shell Finance reporter noticed that in insurance company promotions, annual premiums range from a few yuan to more than 100 yuan depending on age, and some products are even as low as 4.9 yuan per year.
Is specialty drug insurance worth buying? What issues should you pay attention to when purchasing?
Insurance promotion. Screenshot
Special-effect insurance sales are hot: One-year premium is as low as 4.9 yuan
Shell Finance reporters found that as of now, Taikang Life , Ping An Life , Xinhua Insurance , PICC Life Insurance, Ping An Pension Insurance, etc. Insurance companies have launched CAR-T cell immunotherapy insurance, most of which are cheap and have relatively simple protection.
Shell Finance saw in the promotion of Ankangfu CAR-T cell immunotherapy insurance under Ping An Pension Insurance that it only costs 4.9 yuan to get a maximum insured amount of 2 million. The coverage includes medicine fees, examination fees, bed fees and other expenses. People without medical insurance can also purchase it.
The main liability of this product is CAR-T cell immunotherapy insurance with an insured amount of 2 million yuan, and there are also two gift responsibilities, namely CAR-T cell immunotherapy medical arrangement service and medical expense advance service. The promotional content shows that the waiting period for CAR-T cell immunotherapy insurance liability is 30 days, which includes 5 subdivided responsibilities, namely cellular immunotherapy medical insurance, transportation insurance, accommodation insurance, and one-time hospitalization Subsidy insurance and illness and death insurance during treatment. During the insurance period, the contract will be terminated when the total amount of actual accumulated benefits reaches 2 million yuan.
Judging from the insurance conditions, the age range for the first insurance is 18 to 70 years old. There are a total of 4 health notices. The main questions are whether the doctor has recommended that a bone marrow biopsy or/and further blood cytology examination be required; whether the insured has ever suffered from the disease Malignant tumors, etc., if any one of them does not meet the requirements, you cannot be insured. In addition, insurance companies will not accept insurance if you are awaiting test results.
In terms of price, taking a 30-year-old consumer with medical insurance as an example, the one-year premium for CAR-T cell immunotherapy insurance is only 8.6 yuan. However, if you are older, the product price is not cheap, such as The annual premium for a 70-year-old with medical insurance is 113.7 yuan/year.
Shell Finance reporter noticed that in the promotion of insurance companies, the latest anti-cancer technology CAR-T cell immunotherapy is often linked to "special drugs" and "sky-high prices". It also claims to be precise in anti-cancer and worry-free throughout the process. Introduction to
related products. Screenshot
"1.2 million one-shot anti-cancer miracle drug" is released. Can buying insurance buy peace of mind?
A consumer who has purchased the product told a reporter from Shell Finance: "This kind of insurance is really cheap. It costs more than ten yuan to buy an ice cream, but the insurance only costs a few yuan a year. After buying it, I feel at ease."
CAR -The reason why T-cell immunotherapy insurance is “hot” is that the product is cheap and the guarantee is clear. On the other hand, it is related to the better anti-cancer efficacy of CAR-T.
Public information shows that it is called "the anti-cancer miracle drug with 1.2 million shots" by netizens. Since China's first commercial CAR-T cell treatment product Yikaida was officially approved for marketing in China in June 2021, it has been It has been deployed in more than 80 hospitals across the country and treated more than 200 patients.
Everbright Securities research report pointed out that because some patients fail to respond to treatment or are more likely to relapse due to drug resistance, traditional treatment options cannot cure tumor diseases.Clinical studies have shown that CAR-T cell immunotherapy can overcome the above difficulties through its mechanism of action, and is expected to completely eradicate the cells expressing the tumor-related antigen , including tumor cells and cancer stem cells , thereby producing therapeutic effects. Therefore, CAR-T cell therapy can become an effective treatment option for patients who have failed previous treatments.
However, this cutting-edge technology is not suitable for all patients, and medical resources are relatively scarce. Taikang Life Insurance mentioned in a promotion last year that the first CAR-T cell immunotherapy drug in China - Akilonsai Injection (trade name: Yikaida) will be launched in June 2021. Hospitals with relevant resources, There is still a shortage of pharmacies and specialists. There are nearly 50 hospitals across the country with CAR-T qualifications, accounting for only about 3% of the country's top tertiary hospitals. In addition, there are only more than 60 specific pharmacies across the country qualified to order such drugs.
It is worth mentioning that last year, "Shanghai's 1.2 million-shot anti-cancer miracle drug was launched" was widely circulated on the Internet. The Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine switchboard once received hundreds of consultation calls, all asking if CAR-T treatment could be performed. In this regard, relevant departments in Shanghai refuted the rumors. The statement that "a shot of 1.2 million yuan will clear the cancer cells in 2 months" has not been recognized by professional doctors.
In fact, the emerging cell therapy represented by CAR-T cell immunotherapy is the most cutting-edge research field in the current medical field, but its clinical use is still in its early stages, and not all patients are suitable for this treatment method.
Regarding this type of insurance, Zhu Junsheng, research director of the China Insurance and Pension Research Center of Tsinghua University PBC School of Finance, told Shell Finance reporters that because this is a single specialty drug insurance, although the coverage is high, the probability of occurrence is very low. So the insurance premium is relatively cheaper.
Related insurance quotes are based on different ages. Screenshot
CAR-T therapy Is it necessary to purchase separate insurance?
On the one hand, there are high medical costs, and on the other hand, CAR-T cell immunotherapy has been promoted to the "sacred altar". Transferring risks through highly leveraged insurance is undoubtedly an option. However, is it really necessary for consumers to purchase a separate CAR-T cell immunotherapy insurance?
Shell Finance reporter consulted and learned that it is not only the purchase of CAR-T cell immunotherapy insurance that can enjoy this compensation. Some consumers have previously purchased million-dollar medical insurance, which also includes CAR-T cell immunotherapy-related liabilities.
For example, a certain 6-year million-dollar medical insurance with guaranteed renewal of , the insurance liability is divided into general medical insurance liability and critical illness medical insurance liability, including hospitalization medical expenses, special outpatient expenses, and outpatient expenses due to general illness or major illness. Surgical expenses, outpatient and emergency medical expenses for the 7 days before hospitalization and 30 days after discharge (including the day of admission). The cost of CAR-T cell immunotherapy can be compensated as long as the medical expenses incurred during hospitalization (or treatment) in a hospital recognized by the insurance company are in line with the insurance liability.
E Enjoy Care-Mexiang Wuyou Million Medical Insurance (20-year)-Personal Edition also clearly states on the product introduction page that it covers special drugs such as CAR-T, with a maximum annual reimbursement of 2 million.
In addition, some Huimin Insurance also includes responsibilities in this area. For example, Beijing Jinghui Insurance included CAR-T cell immunotherapy in its coverage in October 2021. On February 17 this year, the first CAR-T therapy claim was completed, and the patient Received a compensation of 1 million yuan.
Zhu Junsheng said that the price of CAR-T cell immunotherapy is relatively high, generally costing one million yuan. If a tumor patient wants to receive CAR-T therapy, the medical cost is a relatively large burden. If consumers have already purchased coverage, There is no need to purchase such products separately if there are millions of medical insurance and other products covered by CAR-T therapy. However, many million-dollar medical insurance, Huimin Insurance, etc. do not include relevant responsibilities. You can indeed consider purchasing such products, which are relatively low-priced and highly targeted.
Yang Zeyun, a teacher in the Department of Finance at the School of Management of Beijing Union University, told Shell Finance reporters that for individual consumers, they should be optimistic about the relevant terms when purchasing products. In fact, there are currently some welfare insurance plans on the market that include coverage for CAR-T cell immunotherapy.From a price point of view, although Huimin Insurance is more expensive than single CAR-T therapy insurance, it has more insurance coverage, is more comprehensive, and is more practical. When purchasing, you should also look at the coverage limit for CAR-T therapy in the Huimin Insurance. Some products only have a limit of 500,000, which may not be enough for the use of CAR-T therapy.
“Some million-dollar medical insurance can also reimburse the treatment costs of CAR-T cell immunotherapy. The specifics depend on the terms. For consumers, million-dollar medical insurance that includes CAR-T therapy liability is still better than single therapy insurance. Some." Yang Zeyun said.
Regarding what issues should be paid attention to when purchasing insurance such as CAR-T cell immunotherapy, Zhu Junsheng said that in addition to paying attention to the responsibilities of the product itself, you can also pay attention to additional services, such as whether there are green channels for medical treatment and other resources that can be connected, because CAR- Medical resources for T cell immunotherapy are relatively scarce. If we can connect some resources. For consumers, insurance can not only solve the problem of medical expenses, but also solve many medical problems.
Shell Finance reporter noticed that many insurance companies have emphasized the resources connected to their products in their promotions. For example, a certain product claims to have direct access to CAR-T qualified hospitals and experts, and currently covers 105 CAR-T qualified hospital networks. , helping customers find the right hospital, and at the same time, providing direct access to CAR-T qualified hospital wards to provide hospitalization assistance arrangements, etc.
Beijing News Shell Finance Reporter Pan Yichun Editor Wang Jinyu Proofreader Zhang Yanjun
