Journal Press India^®

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This study examines the performance of India’s health insurance industry from 2011–12 to 2023–24, focusing on the relationship between earned premiums and underwriting profit or loss. It aims to determine whether rising premiums indicate improved performance or mask underlying inefficiencies. Using 13 years of annual data, a simple linear regression was conducted with underwriting results as the dependent variable and premiums as the independent variable. Findings reveal a strong negative relationship (R = 0.9306) and a high explanatory power (R² = 0.8660), indicating that 86.6% of variations in underwriting losses are linked to premium changes. Despite premium growth, losses have increased, suggesting inefficiencies in cost control, claims management, or pricing. The negative, statistically significant coefficient (p < 0.001) confirms this trend. However, a high residual error and small sample size warrant caution. Overall, rising premiums alone do not guarantee profitability and may obscure deeper financial weaknesses.

Keywords

Health insurance; General insurance industry; Underwriting loss; Premium income; Profitability; Regression analysis; Insurance sector performance; IRDAI; India

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