This article, from RGA's ReFlections newsletter, examines how antimicrobial resistance is emerging as a major global threat, prompting large-scale AI-driven research efforts aimed at accelerating new treatment discoveries and improving public health defenses.
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is rapidly escalating into a global health crisis. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), one in six bacterial infections now resists antibiotics, and annual AMR-related deaths could rise by 74.5%, reaching 8.22 million by 2050. This trend threatens to increase hospital stays, add to treatment complexity, and affect mortality – factors that directly impact life and health insurance costs.
In response, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and the Fleming Initiative have launched major research programs covering six themes by leveraging advanced artificial intelligence (AI) to accelerate solutions. Dubbed “Grand Challenges,” these initiatives seek to:
By combining supercomputing power with molecular data, these initiatives seek to break through long-standing scientific barriers and make critical datasets globally accessible, potentially transforming infection prevention and treatment strategies.
For insurers, AMR drives higher claims through prolonged ICU stays, costly therapies, and increased mortality risk. Left unchecked, it could significantly raise life insurance death benefits and health coverage payouts.
AI-enabled breakthroughs offer the potential to curb these trends by reducing treatment failures, improving patient survival, and shortening hospitalizations – all of which directly benefit health insurers.
Insurers should also revisit underwriting assumptions and pricing for health, critical illness, and even life coverage as predictive modelling and precision medicine reshape risk profiles.
As AMR research accelerates, insurers that anticipate these shifts will be better positioned to manage emerging risks and align products with evolving healthcare standards.
RGA experts are eager to engage with clients to better understand and tackle the industry’s most pressing challenges together. Contact us to learn more about RGA's capabilities, resources, and solutions.
