Health Products Initiative

Health Service Brand Linkx (Link Cross)

Sompo Himawari Life seeks a health support enterprise that assists customers in improving their health as the natural evolution of a life insurance company. Striving to carry out this evolution, they launched their Linkx (pronounced “link cross”) brand of services, which they supply as a forerunner in providing new value. Linkx is a concept that helps customers to comfortably and enjoyably maintain good health and it will be developed into a health-related service that focuses on innovative health-centered products and apps.

●Linkx coins

In 2016 they launched Linkx coins (pronounced “link cross coins”; insurance for advanced medical treatment with organ transplantation medical treatment benefit), an online-only product that customers can enroll in for a monthly premium of 500 yen.

If the insured receives highly expensive care involving advanced medical treatment, Linkx coins will pay an advanced medical treatment benefit and an advanced lump sum payment. If the insured undergoes a designated organ transplantation, it will pay an organ transplantation medical treatment benefit.

● Fee-based healthcare services

• Blood sugar coaching

Launch of “Linkx Blood Sugar Coaching” lifestyle improvement support service
This service allows users to monitor changes in their daily blood sugar levels, which cannot be done through conventional means such as health checkups, by wearing a "continuous glucose monitoring" device. The service also helps users learn the causes of and remedial measures for their blood sugar issues.
Obtaining awareness of the relationship between one's own lifestyle and changes in blood sugar levels will lead to proactive lifestyle improvement actions.

• [Industry first] Launch of “Linkx Life Is” life design support service for women

In September 2022, we launched “Linkx Life Is,” the industry's first fee-based healthcare service in the Femtech space.
The health issues of menstruation, future pregnancy, and menopause, along with hormonal fluctuations, are closely related to work performance and life design. Promoting understanding of the impact of hormones on women's lives and presenting personalized remedies will help resolve discomfort and distress.
By addressing the health, career, and other concerns of female employees in companies, and supporting each woman's ideal life design, we can improve the performance of the company as a whole.

●Linkx app series

• Health Support App Kenko Try

In July 2020 we released “Linkx Kenko Try,” an app that supports improvement of lifestyle habits for those who don't know what to do to prevent lifestyle-related diseases or have a hard time taking the first step.
The “Linkx Kenko Try” app can predict the risk of lifestyle-related diseases six years from now based on a photo of health checkup results, and can check stress level just by taking a face photo. The app also displays personalized action cards that suggest activities to help users improve their lifestyle habits and live a healthy and fulfilling life.
The application is available free of charge to all, regardless of whether or not you have a policy with us.

• Linkx Aruku

Linkx aruku (pronounced “link cross aruku”) is a walking app for daily, strain-free, enjoyable walking. The app offers over 1,000 walking courses throughout Japan and users can share photographs and make comments on things they discover during their walk. The app records steps taken, calories consumed, and distance walked merely by carrying the device around, and promotes healthy living by encouraging continuous walking.

Linkx aruku screen

Insurhealth^®Products

Sompo Himawari Life provides Insurhealth^®, a new value combining a traditional insurance function with a healthcare function. By integrating healthcare services with the insurance function that helps ensure peace of mind even in emergencies, we strive to prevent customers from experiencing unexpected health issues.

●Launch of "Protection for You and Your Family," Income Compensation Insurance to Support Health (First in the Industry)

In April 2018 Sompo Himawari Life updated its income compensation insurance, Family Protection, a key product, to launch Linkx: Protection for You and Your Family.
This product features a "health challenge" system, which allows policyholders to lower their insurance premiums by measuring improvements in their health (stopping smoking, BMI, blood pressure) over a certain period from enrollment, and to receive the amount equivalent to the difference in the premiums paid from the time of first enrollment in the form of a monetary reward for completing health challenges.
Customers want protection not only against death but also for protecting their lives if they find themselves unable to work for some reason. To meet this desire, it has increased the options available as added protection against incapacity. These options include: "incapacity rider" that pays customers an annuity if they are certified as having a grade 1 or grade 2 disability and entitled to receive basic disability pension as a guarantee in order to live and "seven major disease rider with mental disease protection" that, in addition to the provision for seven major diseases, allows customers to receive an annuity if corresponding to specific circumstances as a result of a mental illness recognized as a social issue.

● Linkx Pink

Launched in August 2018, Linkx Pink is our initiative to assist women in living fulfilled lives by providing comprehensive support services to ensure early detection of breast cancer and offer insurance coverage if cancer is detected as well as support for patients and survivors.
Inspired by the hope of our female employees to encourage women to live their own fulfilling lives, whether or not they have breast cancer, we started the initiative to do more than just providing support as an insurer.

Linkx Pink (no surrender value cancer diagnosis insurance for women) is a simple cancer insurance that guarantees breast or other cancers. It encourages breast cancer screening by paying a cancer-free bonus once every two years, as well as providing economic support when the insured is treated for cancer. We have also signed partnership agreements with a number of companies to provide seamless services so that women can continue to live with dignity even during and after treatment. These companies share our desire to alleviate anxiety among women and to solve social issues.

● Egao Wo Mamoru Dementia Insurance

In October 2018, we launched Egao Wo Mamoru Dementia Insurance (Dementia Insurance for protecting your smile) that guarantees mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Sompo Himawari Life provides a full range of support to customers by helping them to delay the onset and progression of dementia, along with responding to their nursing care needs. The services include the SOMPO Egao Club dementia support that provides information and services to promote early detection of MCI and dementia and prevent a decline in cognitive function; insurance functions that cover MCI and dementia with a one-time payment; and nursing care and related services of the Sompo Holdings Group to support customers when nursing care is required.
By providing insurance that includes MCI-based services, this “Insurhealth,” ^*1 product aims to deepen understanding of dementia, change the way people approach dementia, support the health of the patient, and reduce the nursing care burden on the care provider.

1. Insurhealth：a new value that combines insurance and healthcare

● “Blue” medical insurance for people with diabetes

On December 24, 2019, we launched “Blue” medical insurance for people with diabetes (lump sum benefit medical insurance for diabetics). There are approximately three million diabetics in Japan, and the number of patients with this classic chronic disease is increasing each year.^*1
Diabetes is a disease with no noticeable symptoms that is said to be a silent killer. As a result, diabetics are prone to stop seeking treatment following changes in their living environment. This is why we offer Insurhealth®, a new type of insurance that incorporates a mechanism to prevent severe aggravation that aims to ensure diabetics continue their treatment.
We are working in partnership with H2, K.K., the developer of Health2Sync, an app for managing chronic illnesses such as diabetes, to support the prevention of severe aggravation in people with diabetes by encouraging them to continuously manage their HbA1c levels^*2 using the app.

1. Source: Patient Survey 2017, Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
2. Hemoglobin A1c: reflects average blood sugar levels over the past one to two months

● Medical insurance to support health “Protection for Your Health”

On June 2, 2020, Sompo Himawari Life launched a new medical insurance product, Medical Insurance MI-01 (whole-life insurance, pet name: Medical insurance to support health “Protection for Your Health”). In addition to the traditional role of paying insurance claims and benefits, this product includes a new service to help maintain and improve health and thus help prevent serious illnesses. When customers claim health recovery support benefits, we provide them with lifestyle disease-related services they need based on their state of health, offering a new value of preventing serious aggravation of illnesses.

● Suwan Toku Cancer Insurance

On March 22, 2021, Sompo Himawari Life launched whole-life cancer insurance (C1) (Suwan Toku Cancer Insurance).
Suwan Toku Cancer Insurance is the industry’s first cancer insurance designed only for non-smokers and can be bought on the internet. The insurance is built on mutual support among non-smokers who are at low risk of disease and offers coverage at an affordable premium. In preparation for the latest cancer treatment, Sompo Himawari Life supports the cost of treatment and loss of income through a cancer treatment benefit that covers a variety of treatments, and a popular cancer diagnosis benefit.
Sompo Himawari Life offers new value to customers by introducing them to products such as SalivaChecker®, a cancer risk test offered by SalivaTech, Co., Ltd. that can be performed at home, to provide not only financial coverage in the event that a customer develops cancer, but also total support for the prevention, early detection, and early treatment of cancer, as well as post-cancer care.

● Release of Health Support Cancer Insurance Yuki no Omamori

As the ninth product in the Insurhealth^® line, on October 2, 2021, the Company released “Cancer Treatment with Co-payment Included (Type I) (C2)” (also called “Whole Life Cancer Insurance”) and “Cancer Diagnosis with Co-payment Included (C3)” (also called “Whole Life Cancer Insurance”) (nicknames for the Health Support Cancer Insurance Yuki no Omamori) as new products. These products provide not only coverage when cancer develops but also total support from before cancer development to post-treatment care. As a service for early detection, the Company has introduced a cancer risk test that can be performed at home, provided by HIROTSU BIO SCIENCE INC. and SalivaTech Co., Ltd. The Company provides coverage that is economical, in light of the costly treatment system, and matched to the latest cancer treatments, thereby realizing a new form of cancer insurance and introducing the industry’s first* system in which insurance premiums are not incurred for the first three months from the start of the contract.

Launch of Medical Master (First in the Industry)

In June 2021, as part of our comprehensive business activity insurance (Business Master Plus), one of our key products, Sompo Japan launched Medical Master, a plan that covers the risk of executives and employees falling ill.
As labor shortage has become a pressing issue for companies, enhancing employee benefits has become a widespread trend in an effort to secure talented human resources, with the aim of improving employee loyalty and reducing turnover rates.
Meanwhile, there is growing concern among executives and employees that they may not be able to work due to illness or other reasons.
Medical Master covers the risk of employees falling ill and being absent from work. Sompo Japan aims to contribute to a society in which people can work with peace of mind by supporting the further enhancement of companies’ employee benefits through Medical Master, thereby solving the issue of labor shortage and removing the anxiety of being unable to work.

Health Care Service Initiatives

Support Services for Corporate Mental Health Measures and Health & Productivity Management
- Contributing to the creation of highly productive organizations by ensuring employee health and well-being

Sompo Health Support teams up with consultants and specialist occupational mental health coordinators (OMC) to provide services to address issues facing corporate customers in various sectors, including support for the development of occupational health systems that focus on mental health measures, support for disabled workers and employees on leave, the employment of industrial physicians, and the planning and implementation of healthcare training.
In addition to services to improve workplace environments using stress checks (57 question version, 80 question version), the company provides two presenteeism^* measurement tools, WLQ-J and WFun.
With the aim of contributing to creating healthy companies, the company also provides comprehensive support for the promotion of health and productivity management, including support for the preparation of related surveys and the visualization of health issues through data analysis, in order to ensure employee productivity, which is a critical issue for corporate management.

• Situation in which employees report to work despite being ill and work while physically unwell

Providing Japan's largest service in specific health guidance
-- Toward a healthy and vibrant society, we will also respond to the super-aged society

As Japan’s society ages and the increasing number of people suffer from lifestyle diseases such as diabetes and myocardial infarction, the increase in medical and other social security costs has become a social issue for Japan. Meanwhile, since fiscal year 2008, public health insurance providers have been required to provide metabolic syndrome checkups as well as follow-up advice in certain cases that meet criteria laid down by the government.

Since fiscal year 2015, health insurance companies have been required to develop and implement Data Health Plans to promote the health of insured workers based on medical prescriptions and other data. It has become increasingly important to take measures to combat health issues beyond just providing specific health guidance.

Drawing on its nationwide network of health professionals, made up of roughly 1,500 health workers, nurses and national registered dietitians, Sompo Health Support provides support to corporate employees as Japan’s largest provider of specified health guidance.
One study shows that approximately 40% of employees who received follow-up advice from Sompo Health Support improved to the point that they required no further guidance the following year.

The company also provides follow-up checkups to help prevent the severe diseases for people on medication and non-obese people facing risks related to blood pressure, glucose, lipid levels, and smoking. It also offers health advice visits for people aged between 65–74 aimed at lifestyle improvement. In all, it has provided guidance on approximately 460,000 health support cases annually to roughly 640 health insurance associations and other organizations. The company is also developing QUPiO Plus (an online and printed booklet), which provides information using ICT. We publish approximately 600,000 copies of the booklet annually and it has been well received.
Sompo Health Support will continuously provide face-to-face health support that matches each customer’s need, as well as original seminars and technical support on health to professionals nationwide to develop a framework that enables the provision of high quality services.

Initiatives Using Digital Technology

Our Group is working in cooperation with various organizations to undertake initiatives that actively use digital technology in order to provide services of the highest quality possible that contribute to the security, health, and wellbeing of our customers.

Launch of Stress Measurement App Using AI and Start of Proof of Concept Tests on Blood Pressure Measurement Technology with an Israeli Startup

Sompo Himawari Life started to collaborate with Binah.ai, an Israeli startup, in the healthcare field in January 2019. During fiscal year 2020, we will launch a stress measurement app using Binah’s digital technology and will start proof of concept tests to measure blood pressure.
Sompo Himawari Life provides Insurhealth® which combines insurance functions with support functions for customers’ health. Binah, meanwhile, provides highly accurate data processing and analysis services using its proprietary algorithms and deep learning technology. Binah’s technology will enable us to measure stress using smart phones and, in the future, we expect to be able to obtain accurate blood pressure values from facial images. By actively harnessing cutting-edge digital technologies, we will provide new health support services to customers and, going forward, we will seek to apply such technologies to the automobile insurance sector and other markets our Group operates in.

Joint Development of AI to Predict Risk of Diabetes and Other Lifestyle Diseases

Sompo Holdings, Sompo Health Support, Toshiba Corporation, and Toshiba Digital Solutions Corporation have jointly developed an AI technology to predict the risk of diabetes and other lifestyle diseases based on a fusion of our Group’s healthcare service-related know-how and the Toshiba Group’s AI and big data analysis technologies.
Our Group has an extensive customer network and the know-how of Sompo Health Support, which provides specific health guidance to approximately 500 health insurance associations. Meanwhile, the Toshiba Group has big data analysis technologies cultivated in various fields of industry and expertise related to healthcare data mining^* acquired through joint research with universities and other institutions both in Japan and overseas.
Utilizing the know-how, technology and expertise possessed by the two Groups, we developed the AI technology based on data from medical examinations of approximately one million persons conducted at cooperating institutions over a period of up to eight years.
As well as improving the accuracy of the AI to predict lifestyle disease risks, the two Groups will promote the development of solutions for encouraging behavioral change, such as improvements in diet and exercise habits.
We will also develop algorithms to support services such as health guidance to prevent the aggravation of diabetes after the onset of the disease while striving to develop and strengthen AI to expand the range of lifestyle diseases it covers.
The Groups also plan to create new businesses by utilizing healthcare data and tie-ups with new partners beyond the boundaries of their own industries.

• Technology that analyzes data in various forms and identifies patterns and regularities mainly for disease treatment and prevention

Launch of the Neurotrack Cognitive Health Program App with Silicon Valley Startup to Detect Risks of Declining Cognitive Functions at an Early Stage and Support Improving and Preserving Cognitive Functions

Sompo Himawari Life has jointly developed, with Neurotrack Technologies, Inc., a U.S. startup based in Silicon Valley, Neurotrack Cognitive Health Program, an app which detects risks of cognitive function impairments at an early stage and offers support to improve and preserve such functions.
This service, available to anyone with a smart phone, uses digital technology to detect the risk of cognitive function impairments at an early stage from a scientific perspective and support health improvements. By grasping the state of their cognitive functions and regularly taking cognitive tests, users are able to detect a decline at an early stage. They can also learn about dementia and prevent the decline of their cognitive functions by incorporating advice provided by the program into their day-to-day life.
We are promoting the SOMPO Dementia Support Program aiming for a society that strives to prepare for dementia and enables people to continue living long and happy lives with dignity as individuals, even after being diagnosed with dementia. Going forward, we intend to contribute to solving social issues by using state-of-the-art technologies developed in Japan and overseas.

Offering Comprehensive Consulting Services for Food Risk Security

comprehensive consulting services for food risk

To support food companies in their efforts to secure food safety and comply with HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point) system which became compulsory in Japan from June 2020, Sompo Risk Management offers comprehensive consulting services for food risks. These services include assistance and training in addressing core risks such as food safety controls, sanitation management, food labeling and food-related accident response (including online flaming response).

Comprehensive Support Services in Emergencies

While approximately 1,000 food recalls continue to occur every year, many food companies express concern about whether they can carry out food recalls quickly and properly in the event of an emergency requiring a food recall. In response, Sompo Risk Management developed a comprehensive emergency support service incidental to Sompo Japan’s recall insurance(food) and started to offer one-stop support service in October 2011 that includes publication of information, the setting-up of a call center, and recall operations when emergencies occur.