Euro-Center Newsletter Vol.01 Issue 01

We would like to welcome you to our first

edition of ‘The Global Insider’, the Euro-

Center customer newsletter.

We have understood there to be an inter-

est in receiving further information from

our local offices in regards to network

expansion, changes in local regulations

and cost containment efforts. The market

is moving forward and so must we.

According to the latest data by Finaccord*,

the global market for separate travel insur-

ance and assistance is expected to reach

USD $18.1 billion by 2017. We at Euro-

Center want to convey what it is that sets

us apart from the competition. The same

Finaccord study cites the largest anticipat-

ed areas of expansion to be the Asia-

Pacific region and Latin America. Euro-

Center has had offices on the spot for

many years in Brazil, China, Bangkok and

Australia. We know the area and can assist

with your future developments.

Euro-Center offices are working on your

behalf to ensure that any claims or assis-

tance that is required locally be addressed

with a true understanding of regional prac-

tices. It is our intention to display why and

exactly how we support the best results

for your business. Each quarter we will

provide you with four articles from local

offices around the world. Our mission is

simple- we want to tangibly demonstrate

what ‘Local Assistance-Worldwide’ really

means.

References* http://www.finaccord.com/

documents/press_releases/2014/press-release_travel-

insurance-and-assistance-worldwide-series.pdf

THE KEY TO OUR SUCCESS

Local presence and knowhow, committed

employees, customer focus, quality and

transparency in the case processing. In

addition to our professional qualifications,

we look for the following when hiring em-

ployees worldwide:

Multi-cultural fluency, i.e. an understand-

ing of the customer’s background as well as

the local healthcare system and regional

challenges.

Language skills in both local and customer

languages so that customers are serviced in

their preferred language.

Unbureaucratic and service-minded

approach.

Credible and professional behaviour.

Welcome!

Krizikova 36a

186 00 Praha 8

Czech Republic

Phone: (+420) 221 860 330

Email: commercial@euro-center.com

Website: www.euro-center.com

The Global Insider June, 2014

Featured Euro-Centers Lisa Resling Halpern

Global Commercial Director

Lisa Resling Halpern page 1

Global Commercial Director

Tanja Roug Wijnen page 2

General Manager Euro-Center Cape Town

Ronald Groenendijk page 4

General Manager Euro-Center USA

Hanne Stender page 3

General Manager Euro-Center Mallorca

Central America Network Extended

Healthcare Developments

Recent Network Development

The Euro-Center Advantage

When is a network truly great?

Medical Inflation in South Africa

Welcome!

The Euro-Center Holding Team

Euro-Center Cyprus Staff

Euro-Center Holding—Praha

Euro-Center Newsletter Vol.01 Issue 01

Africa means business and Euro-Center

Cape Town is excited to be part of the

current surge happening on our continent.

With the global economy slowing and an

increase of financially stable countries in

Africa, international companies are eyeing

the continent’s opportunities. The most

compelling evidence can be seen in the

increased requests for local information,

medical assistance and direct billing in

areas previously primarily occupied by die-

hard NGO- and mine workers.

The Euro-Center Cape Town Team is work-

ing hard to keep itself abreast of any early

indications and developments in anticipa-

tion of requests to come. On the basis of

this, we believe that new countries to

watch in 2014 could be Equatorial Guinea,

Ethiopia, Chad and Congo DRC.

Page 2

We all have the same medical facilities and

challenges available in Africa. However,

when can one rightfully claim to have a top

class network? Indeed, we have a large

number of providers reaching into the

many thousands. But numbers alone are

not a sufficient benchmark. Instead, what

really proves capability is the company’s

ability to set up a network for an expatri-

ate operation in what appears to be ‘terra

incognita’ at short notice. Or to be able to

provide instant assistance to the adventur-

er who underestimated the continent.

How is this done?

The trick is to nurture contacts at key facili-

ties and individuals who are thrilled at

being connectors in international assis-

tance. People, like our own staff, who see it

as a personal challenge to make things hap-

pen. Providers who do not mind going the

extra mile at no charge: It may be a phone

call, a reference, an overview of landing

strips, security information – the list is end-

less. With tenacity, contacts and the ability

to keep communication familiar in Franco-

phone African, an Africa-Arabic dialect or

what ever might work, we see the resistant

rural GP offer cashless service. Or the local

4x4 owner lend his car.

As Nelson Mandela famously stated: “It only

seems impossible, until it’s done”.

Find creative solutions according to this

motto, and a truly great network is built.

When is a network truly great?

Medical inflation in many African nations is surprisingly constant and in tune with national inflations. However, in South Africa the picture

differs.

While the national inflation is approx. 6%, indicative statistics provided by Anton de Villiers, head of Monitoring and Research at the Council

for Medical Schemes shows that the medical inflation for specialists sits at approx. 9%, while inflation at private hospitals lies at 10-12%.

There are several contributing factors. “Nursing staff receive salary increases above the country’s inflation rate”, explains Roly Buys, Funder

Relations and Contracting Executive of Medi-Clinic South Africa. With a worldwide demand for nurses, higher salaries are offered overseas.

South Africa further suffers from a shortage of medical specialists, and supply and demand dictates their rates. Another factor highlighted by

Buys is the cost of medical technology.

On the brighter side, the devaluated South African Rand makes medical treatment

very reasonable for overseas insurances paying in western currencies. The Rand

has devaluated by a third since January 2012 where one EUR bought 10 ZAR. It

now buys 15 ZAR. This exchange rate is expected to stay status quo or even see

the Rand devaluate further in anticipation of the outcome of the South African

elections later in the year.

South Africa is therefore still a good destination for policy holders in need of high-

er level treatment, even with a high medical inflation rate.

Medical Inflation in South Africa

Tanja Roug Wijnen

General Manager

Euro-Center Cape Town

Euro-Center Newsletter Vol.01 Issue 01

Page 3

The past year has been an exciting and chal-

lenging year. Euro-Center Mallorca is the

first Euro-Center, with a lifelong history all

the way back since 1971. It started as Eu-

ropæiske´s Service Center in a small office

just around the corner from where we are

today. At the end of 2012 the Board decid-

ed to close the office in Costa del Sol, and

move all the activity to the Mallorca office

as of March 2013. We have learned a lot,

and have had to sadly say goodbye to some

colleagues.

I am happy to say that we have found dedi-

cated and qualified staff during the past

year. We are now have 11 multi-language

staff in the office, from Spain, Norway, Den-

mark, Sweden, Finland, Russia, Brazil and

Argentina. Our cover area is Spain, Portugal,

Andorra and Gibraltar.

Euro-Center Mallorca

Recent Network Development

Cost Containment is definitively the key

word for the insurance companies. Euro-

peiske in Norway decided to start a Saving

Project in Spain after the presentation of a

steerage program where I participated

together with Euro-Center Turkey and

Cyprus. As a staring point we have made

the Canary Islands our main focus. We

have reached far and we have still a long

way to go, but it has been decided to ex-

tend the project to the rest of Spain as well

as Greece, Cyprus and Turkey.

A lot has changed in the Spanish private

health sector over the past few years.

Large investors are buying hospitals, which

are then converted into really big hospital

chains. One example is Quirón who bought

USP Hospitals, and are now the biggest

group of private hospitals in Spain with 21

hospitals and 45 health care centers. In

some areas this has turned into a monopo-

listic situation and our biggest challenge is

to reach a reasonable price agreement,

and keep the costs down.

As you all may have heard, we have struggled to avoid private intermediaries charging the private travel insurances in the public health care

and not accepting the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) both in Spain as well as in Portugal. After a lot of focus on this matter in the

international press and a severe warning to the Spanish authorities from the European Commission, we now experience that normally the

public hospitals do accept the EHIC card.

In October last year we had a case in a private hospital in Mallorca where a UK citizen travelling on a cruise trip was hospitalized. Euro-

Center has collaboration and a price agreement with the hospital, and we placed a guarantee of payment to the hospital as requested by

the assistance company. After some days we were informed that an intermediary was involved, due to the fact that this intermediary has a

contract with the cruise ship company. The intermediary made the poor lady sign a “compromise to pay” and a consent form. The interme-

diary forwarded us an invoice for the amount of €79.200 for the hospitalization including coronary angiography and angioplasty with stent

implantation.

After many weeks of negotiations with the hospital insisting on paying directly to them, we ended up paying €37.300. In other words, a

saving of €41.900. We will continue to keep a close eye for any future development. We want to thank the insurance company for the close

collaboration, the understanding and patience in this case. As you can see it has paid off.

The Euro-Center Advantage

Hanne Stender

General Manager

Euro-Center Newsletter Vol.01 Issue 01

Euro-Center USA

We are pleased to provide information

about Euro-Center USA and our services.

Our international team of customer service

and assistance professionals is here to assist

with all levels of inquiries. We look forward

to providing you with key developments in

our region and our organization.

About Us

Since 2000, Euro-Center USA has been the

local service center for corporate travelers,

expatriates and tourists requiring medical,

travel and emergency assistance. We work

with thousands of medical providers and

hospitals across our service area in the Unit-

ed States, Canada, Mexico and key areas in

the Caribbean. With the illustrious New York

City as our location, we are the extended

arm for our overseas insurers with members

in our region. We are committed to provid-

ing the highest level of service, with cost

and transparency being our focus.

Our Services

Our extensive local knowledge and key col-

laborator relationships allows us to provide

quality customer service, claims handling

and assistance support for our policyholders

on a localized basis. We help them navigate

the complexities of the US healthcare sys-

tem, and work to ensure costs are custom-

ary and contained to the fullest extent. We

are constantly building our provider net-

work to further extend our coverage.

Our Staff

We have an ethnically and culturally diverse

staff that bring decades of cumulative

health care, customer service and assistance

experience. Our team speaks your language,

including English, Spanish, Danish, German,

Dutch and Korean. With our customer-first

perspective, we strive to make sure that

every interaction with our customers, poli-

cyholders and providers are seamless, pro-

fessional and ethical experiences.

Our Provider Network

Our network encompasses an expansive

region across the United States (including

Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and its territo-

ries), Canada, Mexico and the Dominican

Republic. Through our collaborative part-

ners, we utilize thousands of contracted

providers that directly bill us and provide

discounts on services rendered. We work

with major, world-renowned hospital facil-

ities, national urgent care clinics and phar-

macies, dentists, specialists from every

type of practice and family doctors.

Euro-Center USA is pleased to announce

that we have extended our coverage area

into Mexico and the Dominican Republic.

We are currently working with medical

clinics in major tourist areas such as Can-

cun and Playa del Carmen in Mexico, and

Punta Cana and Puerto Plata in the Domin-

ican Republic. We are also scheduled to do

several site inspections in this area and

intend to work closely with our colleagues

in Euro-Center Latin America, who already

has very strong provider relationships in

these areas. Our knowledgeable and profes-

sional Spanish-speaking staff is ready to

assist.

Thanks to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the healthcare landscape in the United States is

ever-changing. Since the ACA went live on January 1st, enrollments have surged for the

Federal and State-run health care insurance options. Insurers in the USA made major

changes in their plan coverage, now called ‘Essential Health Benefits’. This includes:

Ambulatory patient services

Emergency services

Hospitalization

Maternity and newborn care

Mental health and substance abuse disorder services

Prescription drugs

Rehabilitative/habilitative services and devices (physical and speech therapy, etc)

Laboratory services

Preventive and wellness services and chronic disease management

Pediatric services, including oral and vision care

It is important to note that grandfathered plans in existence before 23 March 2010 are

excluded from this provision. However, all health plans must:

End lifetime limits on coverage

End arbitrary coverage cancellations

Cover adult children up to age 26

Provide a Summary of Benefits and Coverage (SBC), a short, easy-to-understand

summary of the plan coverage and costs

These changes have already affected and continue to affect our overseas insurance cus-

tomers with policyholders in the United States. We have extended our expertise to our

customers and stand ready to provide continued guidance on the best way to approach

plan changes that can make plan transitions more seamless.

Central America Network Extended

Healthcare Developments in the USA

Ronald Groenendijk

General Manager