Expenditure on healthcare accounts for more than 10%1 of the European economy of EUR 14,800 billion2. Population growth and ageing are making it a challenge to keep a lid on ever increasing healthcare costs. Worldwide, these expenditures are set to rise to over EUR 7.000 billion in 2020 according to estimates from consultancy firm Deloitte3.
That is a huge amount.
Prevention can take many shapes. ‘It starts with a healthy lifestyle’, explains Schaufelberger. ‘That includes common-sense approaches such as quitting smoking, maintaining a healthy weight and keeping cholesterol in check. The challenge is in providing incentives for people to do so. In this respect, corporations have an important role to play.’
In the United States, it is quite common for companies to offer wellness initatives that provide monetary incentives for maintaining a healthy lifestyle. During a recent testimony for the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, the CEO of Burd Health said his company was able to lower its healthcare costs by about 40 percent and employees’ cost by 10 percent as a result of a wellness program. Only 15 percent of the employees did not opt into the program.
Awareness of one’s lifestyle may contribute to lowering costs of treatment and brings about a higher quality of life.
According to Schaufelberger, governments should make more attempts to prevent diseases. ‘For example, approximately 40% of the patients suffering from Alzheimer’s disease also have a hearing problem. Because of this, they are more vulnerable of becoming isolated, which speeds up the disease process. By identifying this issue early on and improving the availability of hearing aids, patients might manage longer with less intensive - and therefore less expensive – care. In addition, this would also improve the wellbeing of these patients. A growing focus on prevention instead of treatment would be a positive development for everyone. Of course the financial savings would be enormous. However, the biggest gain would be a higher quality of life for a large part of the population.’
This is one of a series of articles investigating the themes driving our healthy living thematic funds – four actively managed global equity funds.
Focusing on the structural forces shaping our world, our investment managers seek to deliver a compelling risk-adjusted return over the long run.
Important legal information
This marketing material is issued by Pictet Asset Management (Europe) S.A.. It is neither directed to, nor intended for distribution or use by, any person or entity who is a citizen or resident of, or domiciled or located in, any locality, state, country or jurisdiction where such distribution, publication, availability or use would be contrary to law or regulation. The latest version of the fund‘s prospectus, Pre-Contractual Template (PCT) when applicable, Key Information Document (KID), annual and semi-annual reports must be read before investing. They are available free of charge in English on www.assetmanagement.pictet or in paper copy at Pictet Asset Management (Europe) S.A., 6B, rue du Fort Niedergruenewald, L-2226 Luxembourg, or at the office of the fund local agent, distributor or centralizing agent if any.
The KID is also available in the local language of each country where the compartment is registered. The prospectus, the PCT when applicable, and the annual and semi-annual reports may also be available in other languages, please refer to the website for other available languages. Only the latest version of these documents may be relied upon as the basis for investment decisions.
The summary of investor rights (in English and in the different languages of our website) is available here and at www.assetmanagement.pictet under the heading "Resources", at the bottom of the page.
The list of countries where the fund is registered can be obtained at all times from Pictet Asset Management (Europe) S.A., which may decide to terminate the arrangements made for the marketing of the fund or compartments of the fund in any given country.
The information and data presented in this document are not to be considered as an offer or solicitation to buy, sell or subscribe to any securities or financial instruments or services.
Information, opinions and estimates contained in this document reflect a judgment at the original date of publication and are subject to change without notice. The management company has not taken any steps to ensure that the securities referred to in this document are suitable for any particular investor and this document is not to be relied upon in substitution for the exercise of independent judgment. Tax treatment depends on the individual circumstances of each investor and may be subject to change in the future. Before making any investment decision, investors are recommended to ascertain if this investment is suitable for them in light of their financial knowledge and experience, investment goals and financial situation, or to obtain specific advice from an industry professional.
The value and income of any of the securities or financial instruments mentioned in this document may fall as well as rise and, as a consequence, investors may receive back less than originally invested.
The investment guidelines are internal guidelines which are subject to change at any time and without any notice within the limits of the fund's prospectus. The mentioned financial instruments are provided for illustrative purposes only and shall not be considered as a direct offering, investment recommendation or investment advice. Reference to a specific security is not a recommendation to buy or sell that security. Effective allocations are subject to change and may have changed since the date of the marketing material.
Past performance is not a guarantee or a reliable indicator of future performance. Performance data does not include the commissions and fees charged at the time of subscribing for or redeeming shares.
Any index data referenced herein remains the property of the Data Vendor. Data Vendor Disclaimers are available on assetmanagement.pictet in the “Resources” section of the footer. This document is a marketing communication issued by Pictet Asset Management and is not in scope for any MiFID II/MiFIR requirements specifically related to investment research. This material does not contain sufficient information to support an investment decision and it should not be relied upon by you in evaluating the merits of investing in any products or services offered or distributed by Pictet Asset Management.
Pictet AM has not acquired any rights or license to reproduce the trademarks, logos or images set out in this document except that it holds the rights to use any entity of the Pictet group trademarks. For illustrative purposes only.