Inactive workplace health insurance policies, which surged in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, dropped in 2023 compared with the previous year’s figures, the Bermuda Health Council has reported.

However, employer compliance complaints increased marginally, with the health watchdog getting 18 complaints last year versus 16 for 2022.

Seven of those complaints were resolved, seven were dismissed, and four were referred to the labour relations office.

Small businesses reported that they were “struggling to afford their monthly health insurance premiums”, according to the report.

The health council’s Employers’ Compliance Annual Report for 2023 highlighted a “noticeable decrease” in the number of policies reported by insurers as inactive in that year compared with 2022.

It added: “However, a significant portion of inactive policies was reported during the last four months of 2023.

“This upward trend at the end of the year may indicate that noncompliance will increase in 2024.”

The decrease in inactive or “on-hold” policies, in which claims were not paid, came with a 29 per cent drop in the total number of staff affected compared with 2022.

Smaller businesses, defined as companies with ten or fewer employees, continued to account for the majority of firms reported monthly by the island’s insurers as noncompliant.

Many were said to have moved their policies from private insurers to the Government’s Health Insurance Department, which in turn reported most cases of noncompliance.

The health council said: “Of the employers investigated in 2023 for having inactive health insurance policies, 55 per cent of policies were reactivated.

“This resulted in 1,171 employees regaining health insurance coverage.”

The Health Insurance Act 1970 requires employers to maintain an active health insurance policy for all staff, along with their non-employed spouses.

Online publication of noncompliant employers on the health council’s website launched in June 2015, after amendments to its governing legislation.

A total of 111 noncompliant employers were posted on the website in 2023, compared with 65 in 2022.

The figures come from public and private insurers, which give monthly reports to the council including a list of policies in arrears or terminated with claims not being paid.

The health council notifies each employer of their noncompliant status and legal obligations under the Act, with two weeks given to provide proof of coverage.

Those who fail to provide evidence of an up-to-date policy face having their company name listed online.

Persistent noncompliance is referred to the Department of Public Prosecutions.

In 2023, 525 employer policies were reported by insurers as inactive or terminated, affecting 2,041 staff.

The figure includes policies that were reported as inactive for two or more consecutive months, and thus counted twice or more.

The 2023 report showed that overall, $468,763 was recovered under the standard health premium last year.

The figure was based on an uninsured employee’s monthly standard premium rate of $400.31.