Healthysure, a one-stop solution making the health insurance ecosystem affordable, accessible & attainable  

• ByStartupStory     |    December 21, 2022

There are many versions in the world associated with the pandemic of Covid 19. For some, it has been a phase that can be called a disaster but for some, it has been a stepping stone for large-scale impact.

In an exclusive interview with Startup Story, the Co-Founders of Healthysure, Mr. Sanil Basutkar & CEO Mr. Anuj Parekh, shared their story of how the pandemic has been a driving force for them to understand the problem people faced in the sector of health insurance in the country and to offer them with a duly planned and efficient solution, which they named as Healthysure. Healthysure is an employee welfare insuretech platform which is all set to revolutionize the ecosystem of the Health Insurance sector of the country.

About Healthysure and the story of its incorporation:-

When Anuj graduated from IIM Bangalore, he always wanted to find a solution to the problem people are facing. As a chartered accountant and with 9+ years of experience in management consulting, investment banking and corporate finance, he has now finally stepped into the growing sector of start-ups in the country. He was also the project consultant at Virgin Hyperloop before starting Healthysure.

Co-founder Sanil is also a chartered accountant with several years of experience in product, financial services, and management consulting. He completed his graduation from the Indian School of Business. Sanil was the lead product manager at Torre Capital, a fintech investments platform, and also the founder of Saransh, a news app, before co-founding Healthysure.

They have been very good friends from their undergrad days when they studied at N.M. College, Mumbai. They always wanted to solve problems, create an impact, and had an entrepreneurial mindset. Anuj handles sales, business development and operations, whereas Sanil looks at the product, technology and marketing at Healthysure. Their prior experience with start-ups has helped Healthysure achieve this great level of success.

When the country was in the havoc of Covid-19, they both felt that the pandemic had crumbled the health infrastructure of the country and people were facing a lot of difficulties with their health insurance. They witnessed that despite having organization-sponsored health insurance cover, people were struggling and facing a lot of difficulties as their insurance was inadequate in covering the expenses incurred.

As they analysed deeper, they found that inadequate health insurance coverage has been a major problem for a long time. They thought of making the health insurance sector witness a new ray of hope, striving hard to provide their corporate clients with the best possible comprehensive umbrella health insurance cover that would prove to be a one-stop solution for all.

The founders are of the opinion while it may not be possible to reach the 200 million working population and their families, it is possible to partner with all those who have access to those 200 million. That is why they have come up with an intriguing idea of providing organizations with the opportunity to avail of their services in the form of group insurance and letting the workforce get holistic health insurance cover.

Health Insurance Industry Prospect:-

Health Insurance is a major contributor to the expansion of the general insurance market in India. It contributes to approximately 29% of the total general insurance premium income in India. The expansion of this sector is significant in terms of the overall expansion of the general insurance industry. The insurance market is expanding due to significant government initiatives, strong democratic factors, a favourable regulatory framework, growing partnerships, product innovations, and dynamic distribution networks. Health insurance is a rapidly growing sector of the Indian economy. For instance, as per India Brand Equity Foundation, in the fiscal year 2020, there was an increase in health insurance coverage. In Bihar, Assam and Sikkim the proportion of households with health insurance increased by 89% in FY20 compared to FY16. Similarly, health insurance gross direct premiums reached Rs 848.40 lakh (US$ 1.21 billion) in FY20 and contributed 30.2% to non-life insurance companies’ gross direct premiums in India.

Challenges faced by Healthysure:-

The founders shared some major challenges that they faced in this journey of their start-up. They told us that a start-up is like a seed that is sown and the dedication and time you bestow upon it is the nutrient for the ultimate growth of any organization and so is the case with their start-up.

They said that, like every start-up, they had to face challenges like finding the right team members for the smooth transition of an organization from its introduction phase to its growth phase. They consider themselves lucky as they have put together a trusted team. They are a team of 50+ dedicated members. They are striving hard to build from scratch: from zero to one, and then finally a hundred. He further added that the company is working hard to reach the remotest areas of the nation and deliver the most suitable health insurance cover to the people. Talking about the percentage coverage, he told us that 30% of their clients are from Mumbai and 70% are from other states of the country.

Product & Services:-

Healthysure is providing an umbrella package of health insurance to people starting from a nominal amount that a person can easily bear. The uniqueness of their package is that they not only just cover emergency conditions but also provide primary healthcare needs such as consulting doctors, diagnosis of health conditions, and mental health & counselling for reducing stress & anxiety moreover, they also provide physical fitness through gym memberships throughout the country with their partners.

They operate in the B2B space and are also able to target employees and have a B2B–B2C segment. Insurance plans may cost as little as Rs 200 per employee per month for basic covers and can go as high as Rs 103,000 per employee per month for comprehensive coverage.

Customer Acquisition:- 

Customer acquisition in the introduction phase of any organization is very challenging. You need a proper knowledge base about your target market and the ways to effectively land and make a space in the customer’s heart.

Anuj & Sanil carefully studied the health insurance claims issues that are to be addressed before engaging customers in the long run. They focused on technology-enhanced ease and on making the health insurance sector fully automated and less stressful. The platform is dedicated to solving the client’s pre-sales and post-sales issues. This would drive insurance penetration in the country and more clients would like to avail of these services.

Vision of the founders:-

Anuj and Sanil have envisioned taking this start-up to the next level by digitizing the whole process of group health insurance. They have worked closely on the pre and post-sales support to their clients with minimal stress and formalities.

Healthysure is providing multiple combinations of health insurance not only for medical emergencies, but also for the primary healthcare needs of an individual. Moreover, clients are provided with personalized communication in the form of e-mail or WhatsApp, which ensures trust and helps in maintaining cordial relations with them. They are working hard to drive sales in their favour with proper API integration and an efficient member management system.

Healthysure has also been working to allow intermediaries to partner with them and help penetrate deeper into the market. Sanil told us that they were previously allowed to partner with three insurance companies but now as the regulations open up, they are now allowed to partner with twenty-seven insurers. He also added that they are creating an ecosystem of partner companies and distributors, to lobby the government to reduce the GST slab of 18% to 12% or even 5% in the near future.

In their closing remarks, they added that,

“It’s not just to have an idea; it’s about how to have an idea that can be marketable and have the potential to make a change in the industry. Know what is needed in the market; and build a product that is relevant for the market, rather than force it on the market.”

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