How much can the fees increase in March and the two logics that will set the pace of the increase?

In the days in which this note is written, prepaid companies must have defined the increase they will impose in March installments, an increase that must be notified to its members 30 days in advance. However, of seven entities consulted, only one responded and asked not to be mentioned, arguing that they manage imprecise definitions.

The increase they foresee, although it is far from being generalized, will serve as an example of the lesser evil for the pockets of the more than 6 million prepaid membersthat based on what they paid in December they already had an increase of 75%.

If we emphasize that what follows below cannot be taken in a general way, it is for two reasons. The first is that Javier Milei’s decree allowed entities to adjust their quotas without any official authorization, so that each one can impose the percentages they like.

It must be remembered that in the first two months of the year, the companies agreed on adjustments that were not identical but in a “scheduled” range, which generated complaints of “cartelization” of the sector. From the Civic Coalition, for example, they pointed out that there was not really competition between the actors but rather an “abuse.” And everything occurred in a context of various judicial protections.

It is a very difficult topic because two incompatible realities coexist. Whoever takes the time to look at the accounts reported by any small health company (without apparent ostentatious ambitions) will see that the increases in these months can be justified in minutes, always in terms of keeping the wheels of a business moving, something that cannot be It has to be “bad”, of course. But the point is that this business is dedicated to a topic too sensible for life: health.

At the same time, looking at the scale of possibilities of a typical family of the (now) former Argentine middle class, the increases in January and February were painful, they felt excessive and without a doubt they are proving expulsive for many families who entrusted their health to these companies. This reality (in which a company that one fed day and night for years, one day simply “discards” you) cannot be denied either.

Returning to the axis of these lines (the increase in March), each company today can increase what it sees fit, and due to the commotion of cartelization signals, several of the six that did not respond to Clarion They stressed that “in any case, each one decides their own thing separately.” An emphatic way to detach yourself from any label in the direction of posterization.

The second reason why an increase cannot be generalized was explained by the only source that spoke with this medium. He said that today they prevail two logics of increases: one harder and another, one could say, “light”.

“There are no definitions. We are watching and it will be finalized this week. It is a topic that we do not discuss among ourselves,” clarified the person who responded to this medium, and added: “What I can tell you is that there are two logics. On the one hand there is the economic criterion; on the other, the commercial judgment”.

The economic criterion is the one that the largest companies have, which outside of inflation Try to recover the points lost in the last year.when for a few months the Government allowed increases in fees well below the increases in the sector, between supplies, medicines and salaries.

Business judgment, this person said, focuses not only on corporate social responsibility but also on the fear of smaller companies of losing customer base. It is a luxury that they cannot afford, since they do not have the back of large companies.

“Recover what was lost? It will be done in a little bit. us in march we are going to match the fee with inflation, based on our February projections. At this moment I have those of two consultants. One says it will be 18%. The other, 22%. We will be within that range”he reported.

You don’t need to know anything about economics to do the calculation. With 20% for March being the most favorable scenario, and considering the 40% that was applied in January, plus the (according to each company) approximate 25% in February, we immediately arrive at an increase of 110% regarding prepaid medicine installments from last December.

In other words, quotas will exceed doubling, something that will not surprise those who until December had increases appeased by their income declaration before the (these days, chaotic) Superintendency of Health Services. Just as they had special increases, these affiliates received an equally differential slap with the change of Government.

“My goal in this crisis is pass the peak of the storm, which will be in March and April, when transportation, rates, fuel and schools rise again. The portfolio of associates must be contained and the assets preserved. Recovering what was lost is going to be long-term,” the source confessed, not without some concern about the requests for dismissal.

By the way, there are not few. In the sector they warn that the year-on-year increase in “exiles” from prepaid companies is, today, 100%.

“I give you an example. Yes, last year, in January, 7,000 capitas left me. This year I’m getting 14,000. It is compensated with highs, yes. But this year we have a record of both,” she revealed. The solution for many companies, confirmed the person consulted, is the new low-cost airplanes, “which many are requesting.”

In short, if there are two logics for adjusting quotas, it is because “large companies don’t care so much about losing a little clientele.” But not everyone experiences this exodus in the same way: “I hope to be able to come out in pairs. Matched or just a little smaller.”