There is bias in healthcare, insurance coverage for underrepresented groups: Plum

There are significant gaps in healthcare and insurance access faced by underrepresented groups in the workplace, finds a new study.

The report by employee insurance platform Plum, titled ‘What Goes into Building a Company That Cares’ reveals that while the conversation around diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) has gained considerable traction over the recent years, the needle is yet to move to ensure access to quality healthcare and insurance coverage for underrepresented groups: including members of the LGBTQAI+ community, people with disabilities and women.
These underrepresented communities make up approximately 50% of India's population.


60% of the platform's customers have opted for new-age insurance coverage, demonstrating a growing demand for comprehensive healthcare.

However, while progressive and comprehensive, less than 1% of these covers are inclusive. For example, there is much to be done to cover people with disabilities (example: Down’s Syndrome, cerebral palsy or autism) or even add LGBTQAI+ specific treatments (like gender reassignment surgery and mental health support) to these comprehensive policies.

Additionally, less than 25% of customers have comprehensive insurance that caters to women's unique healthcare and lifestyle needs, resulting in higher out-of-pocket expenses for an overlooked segment of the population.

"We are on a mission to redefine corporate healthcare practices by advocating for comprehensive employee health benefits that truly embrace inclusivity. By acknowledging and addressing the disparities faced by diverse employees, particularly those belonging to underrepresented groups, we have the potential to instigate change in the way companies prioritise the well-being of their workforce," said Abhishek Poddar, co-founder and CEO of the Tiger Global and Sequoia Capital-backed platform.

The platform's whitepaper on inclusion through insurance also proposes corrective measures to make benefits at workplaces truly inclusive.

Plum collaborated closely with top DEI experts and activists like Saundarya Rajesh - founder-president at Avtar The Power of Diversity, Harish Iyer, an equal right activist, Akshay CM - DEI and talent management consultant, Priti Shetty - chief people and culture officer at WeWork, etc. to develop this whitepaper.