Rethinking the role of insurance
Healthcare features prominently as we examine rising medical costs and the context behind increasing premiums. Insurers are moving beyond basic payouts to offer dynamic, personalised cover that adapts to customers' needs. With public and private systems facing affordability and access challenges, we explain how medical insurance can bridge gaps, especially around dread disease coverage and prescribed minimum benefits, which are often misunderstood.
We also highlight critical insurance shortfalls, including life insurance gaps that leave many families exposed. On the short-term insurance front, we look at its role in personal security and economic stability, especially as climate change intensifies risks for agriculture and property.
Our features on environmental volatility and 'acts of God' show how underinsured properties can worsen financial hardship after disaster. For travellers and homeowners, we offer expert advice to navigate policy details. At the corporate level, trade credit insurance can
protect businesses from the fallout of unpaid debts in tough economic times. Finally, we explore how artificial intelligence is transforming insurance – improving customer service while introducing new risks – and how mergers and specialist underwriting agencies are reshaping the industry. Protection is not just peace of mind; it is power. We hope this issue empowers you to make informed decisions for your business, home and wellbeing.
Elriza Theron
Editor
Page 2
Wellness is no longer a workplace perk. It's a business imperative. Across boardrooms and breakrooms, there's a growing recognition that healthy employees are more engaged, more productive, and more likely to stay.
This edition of Healthy Times explores the many dimensions of corporate wellness—mental, physical, financial, and beyond—and how organisations are embedding wellbeing into the heart of their culture. Today's forward-thinking leaders are shifting from managing employees to supporting the whole human being. Whether through mental health interventions, financial literacy support or innovative tools like wearables and wellness apps, companies are reimagining how they care for their people. And it's not just the big corporates. We also shine a light on smaller businesses, proving that impact doesn't always require big budgets—just commitment and creativity. The conversation is shifting from burnout to balance, from stigma to support, from reactive to proactive. It's encouraging to see South African businesses embracing this change, not just for productivity, but also because it's the right thing to do.
We hope this issue inspires your own wellness journey—both personal and organisational.
Because when we prioritise people, everybody wins
Raina Julies
Page 3
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