AXA UK & Ireland is betting big on health insurance as it seeks to address one of the most urgent challenges facing British employers: a workforce increasingly sidelined by long-term illness.
Chief executive Tara Foley has made health cover a strategic priority, positioning AXA’s offering as a solution to the UK’s record levels of workforce sickness and declining productivity.
Foley, who took over as CEO in September 2023, is direct about the scale of the issue. “It’s shocking. It’s so stark, and it’s really affecting productivity,” she said in an interview with CityAM, citing 2.8 million people in the UK workforce now living with long-term health conditions – a figure that has surged since the pandemic.
“This government’s objective is around growth productivity, but you need an active workforce, and we have a workforce where at least a third of them have some kind of long-term health issue, and usually the most common forms of that are musculoskeletal or mental health,” she added.
For Foley, the solution lies in timely intervention. “The quicker you get treatment, and the quicker you get seen, diagnosed, and treated, the more likely you are to recover and re-enter the workforce or maybe not leave it at all in the first place,” she said.
She highlights that this approach has made health insurance a “critical differentiator” for AXA in the UK, where public healthcare backlogs have pushed more individuals and employers to seek private cover.
While health insurance is a familiar product in Ireland – where private provision is well-established – Foley notes the competitive landscape is markedly different in the UK. Here, the public system is under strain, and private health cover is increasingly seen as a vital tool for both individuals and employers seeking to maintain productivity.
The scale of the workforce health crisis is stark. As of mid-2025, an estimated 2.78 million people in the UK are economically inactive due to long-term sickness, up from just over two million in 2019. The proportion of working-age people reporting at least one long-term health condition rose to 36% in early 2023, with mental health and musculoskeletal issues leading the causes.
In 2024 alone, 148.9 million working days were lost to sickness or injury, averaging 4.4 sick days per worker. The average number of sick days per company has climbed by more than 50% since 2019, and absence rates remain highest among women, older workers, and those in public sector or part-time roles.
The economic impact is also significant. The UK workforce is now 700,000 smaller than before the pandemic, with long-term sickness the main driver of economic inactivity since 2021. This has contributed to persistent job vacancies, wage pressures, and a flatlining economy.
Business groups and economists warn that high levels of ill health are stalling growth, raising inflation, and increasing the burden on employers and public finances. For AXA, this environment underscores the urgency – and opportunity – of expanding health insurance and support for employers and employees alike.
“Our objective is to be at least a £7bn gross written premium (GWP) company,” Foley said, but she emphasised that growth must be relevant and sustainable. “It’s not just about growing top line. We want to make sure we’re in the right sectors with the right products.”
As AXA UK&I enters the final year of its current strategic plan, Foley is preparing to define the next phase, aiming to balance growth with technical excellence and sustainable, competitive pricing.
“There are so many different avenues to pursue for growth, and we’re looking at all of the ones that are of interest to us,” she said.
What are your thoughts on this story? Please feel free to share your comments below.
