25 May 2017
Melbourne, 24 May 2017 – AIA Australia, one of the largest life insurers in Australia*, is proud to announce an innovative alliance with GMHBA, a not for profit health fund, and South Africa’s financial services provider Discovery. Together they have joined forces through a joint venture to create a new health insurance brand called myOwn that will offer consumers health and life insurance bundled with the wellness program AIA Vitality. When launched, myOwn branded health insurance products will be the first in the Australian market that are coupled with the AIA Vitality program.
This new health insurance venture through myOwn is an important step in AIA Australia delivering on its vision to help champion the cause of making Australia the healthiest and most protected nation in the world. myOwn will be available for customers later this year and will offer health insurance with the AIA Vitality wellbeing program to help its members lead healthier lives and get more value for money. As part of this joint venture, GMHBA will also offer AIA Vitality to its members.
Damien Mu, CEO AIA Australia and New Zealand, said: “As a leading life insurer, we are excited to be joining with GMHBA and Discovery who are proven local and global health insurance experts respectively. Collectively, we will bring together the best of each organisation and create a new way to engage with insurance, allowing customers to experience the innovative offering and supporting them to be well, get well, and protect their future. We are proud of the role we play in helping to protect Australians and their families through financial advisers, affinity partners and superannuation funds. With myOwn offering life and health insurance linked with AIA Vitality, we will not only help to financially protect but also to improve the health and wellbeing of Australians.”
The globally successful Vitality program, developed by Discovery and branded in Australia as AIA Vitality, incentivises people to make healthy choices. AIA Vitality rewards are linked to actions that aim to improve or maintain good health, such as physical activity, preventive screening and eating a healthy diet. myOwn will package AIA Vitality with its health insurance products so that members who are actively engaged in the program may be eligible for premium discounts and a range of rewards offered by AIA Vitality.
Mark Valena, CEO GMHBA, said: “myOwn is an exciting development in that we are creating a new form of insurance offering – one that will bring together health insurance, life insurance and wellbeing: there hasn’t been anything like this available on the market in Australia before. Through this new alliance we are delighted to be providing GMHBA members with access to AIA Vitality. This is a significant step forward for GMHBA, as not only will it provide a valuable point of difference for us as a fund, but it will also increase value for our members as they engage in a program that is orientated around a healthy lifestyle.”
Barry Swartzberg, CEO of Vitality Group, a subsidiary of Discovery Limited, said: “Discovery is pleased to join with AIA Australia and GMHBA to bring this innovative health and life insurance offer to Australians to foster happier, healthier lives. In South Africa, where we have combined Vitality with health and life insurance products for many years, Vitality members have shown vast interest and improvement in understanding their health and how to address health risks. Over many years, we have seen that those engaged in Vitality have fewer and shorter hospital stays, and their overall healthcare costs are lower. The rewards are powerful for members and society. We look forward to seeing how these benefits manifest as myOwn grows and helps its members take steps to lead healthier lives.”
*Source: Strategic Insight
Contacts:
Ingrid Nienaber, AIA Australia
T: +613 9009 4143
E: Ingrid.Nienaber@aia.com
Mimi Skoko, GMHBA
T: +613 5202 8708
E: mimiskoko@gmhba.com.au
Felicity Hudson, Discovery
T: +27 11 5294514
E: FelicityH@discovery.co.za
About myOwn
myOwn is a new brand created to bring together health and life insurance with the AIA Vitality wellbeing program to help its members lead healthier lives and get more value for money. Initially, myOwn will launch with an offering consisting of private health insurance and AIA Vitality, with the parties also intending to add life insurance to the bundle later. myOwn is a joint initiative of life insurer AIA Australia, GMHBA, a not for profit health fund, and South African financial services provider Discovery.
About AIA Australia
AIA Australia Limited is an independent life insurance specialist with over 40 years of experience building real and sustainable partnerships. AIA Australia offers a range of products that protect and enhance the lives of nearly three million Australians and is widely recognised as a market leader in product innovation and development. AIA Group Limited and its subsidiaries (collectively “AIA” or the “Group”) comprise the largest independent publicly listed pan-Asian life insurance group. It has a presence in 18 markets in Asia-Pacific.
AIA Australia is one of the country’s largest life insurers by market share and works closely with major financial institutions and corporate partners to provide life insurance solutions for their customers. In addition, AIA Australia is the fastest growing provider of retail life insurance products sold through financial advisers. AIA Australia also works with a network of affinity partners that distribute life insurance products. By having a partnership philosophy at the core of its business, AIA Australia is focused on building genuine relationships and delivering real value to its business partners.
In March 2014, AIA Australia introduced ‘Vitality’ – the world’s leading scientifically-backed health and wellness program, to the Australian market. AIA Vitality aims to be the catalyst for real change to the positive health outcomes of Australians.
About GMHBA
GMHBA is an Australian not for profit health insurance and care company with more than 80 years’ experience. With a mission to help people master their own health, we have worked with members, partners and local communities for generations to provide health and care solutions.
Through our evolution, we have become more than just a health insurer - now encompassing eye care, dental care and primary care in our growing portfolio. We see a future in delivering holistic health and care programs in proactive ways to encourage members, patients and communities to be healthier together.
GMHBA is Australia’s leading regionally based private health insurance company, covering over 400,000 Australians.
About Discovery
Discovery Limited is a South African-founded financial services organisation that operates in the healthcare, life assurance, short-term insurance, savings and investment products and wellness markets. Founded in 1992, Discovery is guided by a clear core purpose – to make people healthier and to enhance and protect their lives. Underpinning this core purpose is the belief that through innovation, Discovery can be a powerful market disruptor and a force for social good. To pursue this goal, Discovery employs its Vitality Shared Value Insurance model, which incentivises healthier behaviour for the benefit of clients, insurers and society. With headquarters in Johannesburg, South Africa, Discovery has expanded its operations globally and currently impacts 6.9 million lives in 16 countries and has close to 12,000 employees worldwide.
