NHRC recommends measures to eliminate discrimination against people with disabilities in the private insurance sector
NHRC recommended the Prime Minister, Ministers of Justice, Finance and Economy, Governor of Financial Supervisory Service to revise related laws and screening criteria for people with disabilities, to provide policy support and to manage and supervise that support
After investigating discrimination cases on buying insurance products and compensation based on disability in the private insurance sector, NHRC found that the equal rights of people with disabilities have been violated and that to eliminate discrimination, revising related laws and supportive policies is required.
Accordingly, NHRC decided to recommend (1) the Minister of Justice to eliminate article 732 of the Commercial Law, which refers to people with mental illnesses or psychiatric disabilities, (2) the Minister of Finance and Economy to amend Insurance Business Law and the Regulation on Compensation for Damage Caused by Fire and Buying Insurance Products (Regulation of Fire Insurance Application), (3) the Governor of Financial Supervisory Service to improve the common underwriting screening standards for persons with disabilities and to enforce active supervision of private insurance companies against unreasonable standards. In addition, in order to make substantial improvements in regards to discrimination, support for and coordination of relevant laws and policies among different ministries is required. Therefore, NHRC recommended (4) the Prime Minister to take actions including policy coordination among the concerned ministries to implement proposed improvements.
The findings of the investigation concluded:
(1) Due to Article 732 of Commercial Law, for those with a mental illness or psychiatric disability, it is practically impossible to buy insurance;
(2) People with other disabilities receive subjective and unreasonable treatment with respect to insurance application screening standards, coverage and compensation; Also,
(3) In spite of the fact that a fire or other disaster at facilities for the disabled and workplaces that employ a large number of people with disabilities would result in large scale damages, the financial burdens of group insurance and discrimination are prohibitive and this situation is largely neglected.
Therefore, NHRC considers that Article 732, originally designed to protect people with mental illnesses and psychiatric disabilities from being deprived of their right to uniformly buy insurance, violates universal rights guaranteed under the Constitution and international human rights conventions. So, it recommended the Minister of Justice to remove the Article.
Also, NHRC concluded that immediate legislative responses are required to prevent discrimination from recurring in the private insurance sector and substantial guarantees must be systematically prepared in case of a disaster at a facility or workplace of people with disabilities. Thus, NHRC recommended the Minister of Finance and Economy to prevent insurance companies from acting irrationally against persons with disabilities by amending Insurance Business Law, and to come up with a basis where the Ministry could take corrective actions on discriminatory insurance screening standards. NHRC also recommended the Minister to revise the regulation of Fire Insurance Application so that the facilities must be covered by mandatory group insurance.
In addition to these legislative efforts, NHRC concluded that it is necessary to improve disability related assessment standards, a major cause for discrimination in the insurance industry. NHRC advised the Governor of Financial Supervisory Service to improve the common underwriting standards to more reasonable standards, and to actively manage and supervise insurance stipulations, special contracts and underwriting standards of private individual insurers.
In the meantime, NHRC decided that efforts to eliminate against people with disabilities in the private insurance sector can be made only in formality because the concerned ministries adhere to their respective ordinances, policies and financial support. For one thing, research in the public and private sector and financial support would be sponsored by the government and premiums for mandatory group insurance to the facilities for people with disabilities would be provided to form reasonable underwriting and evaluation standards for people with disabilities. To do that, NHRC recommended the Prime Minister to take active measures to financially support and coordinate policies among the respective ministries. -End-
