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Insight
Norway has long been recognised as a society
that takes health insurance seriously. The Football
Association of Norway (NFF) has funded and
designed a new generation of sports insurance and
treatment.
The medical centre (IHS) at the Ullevaal Stadium
has been up and running for a year now and
continues to grow. It is part of a fully-integrated
insurance system that handles claims efficiently
and comprehensively and is now being offered
to sports people outside the world of Norwegian
football.
The insurance provided for all Norwegians is
renowned as one of the more centralised in the
world, and is fully funded by tax income. In the
global context, it is a leader - even Michael Moore
cites it as an example that the American system
cannot hope to emulate.
However, the success of this national insurance
provider means that private insurance in Norway is
not as readily purchased and while it covers normal
civilian health issues, it does not provide elite sports
people with the cover they need.
The IHS system fills the gap for Norway’s
footballers, and increasingly other sports are
seeing the benefits of this program.
The guiding principle for the program it to provide
“better treatment for more people”. In the spirit of
this notion, children over the age of 12 who are
registered at clubs are not only covered for injuries
sustained playing football, but they are covered for
all other sports as well. There is no similar cover to
be found in Norway.
“Better treatment” is defined by the NFF as a
combination of fast response times and state of
the art medical treatment. Once a claim is lodged,
it can be processed in as little as 2 hours. The
claimant is then contacted with 11 hours in order
to set up the more appropriate treatment. This
impressive turn around is largely made possible
through the sophisticated online systems that
the program uses for each claim. The scheme is
operated in conjunction with the insurer for the
NFF, Sportscover.
The IHS - Norway’s
Innovative Insurance Option
The system is based on a holistic approach to medicine which is not merely reactive. The levels of coverage can be found on the centre’s
website
http://www.fotball.no/nff/fotballforsikring/2011/Ytelser/
. At the highest grade of coverage, not only are acute and gradually-
attained injuries covered, but so are x-rays, ultra sounds, eating disorders, surgery, dentistry and disability.
The medical centre at the Ullevaal Stadium is a significant part of the system and incorporates state of the art technologies in the
prevention and treatment of injuries. In this constantly evolving centre, players have access to doctors, physiotherapists and cutting edge
rehabilitation technology.
While in the past surgeons have come to the centre on a weekly basis, there are plans to employ top-class surgeons that work exclusively
for the NFF. This will ensure that rather than the wait of up to three months for surgery from the national insurer, members of the scheme
will wait no longer than 10 days for their operation. The implications for the continued well being of both the injured sports person and the
federation as a whole are obvious. Faster responses and shorter waiting lists mean that the sports people can get back to playing and
entertaining their fans.
The IHS and its insurance scheme is a bold and ambitious plan can take Norwegian sport to another level. Football is already enjoying
the benefits of this program. Soon, many other sports around the country could be enjoying similar advantages.