An influential think tank has reported recently that the insurance industry has not been successful at eliminating the dependency of people on the welfare state.

A report titled ‘the end of entitlement’ states that social security benefits should be replaced by private provisions. According to them, this will eliminate the disparity that the public finances face as compared to state’s finances.

The authors write that from the point of view of an individual, there should be a single product that is flexible and enables savings towards a number of critical life events.

This could include retirement, higher education, health insurance and medical care. The authors further state their views, saying that the reason such products are not created, is because of a lack of initiative that enterprises suffer from. This is partly also because of an overdrive of regulations.

A managing director and technical editor of health insurance for a leading healthcare insurance report website, said that the think tank was justified in its views.

He stated his own views on the matter by saying that the health insurance industry still thought in compartmentalised divisions saying that the industry was averse to risk and creativity.

He further said that the way the industry was exposed to regulation and taxation also affected the scope for creativity.