Aon’s 2025 Global Medical Trend Rates Report indicates that New Zealand has experienced some of the most significant increases in medical costs within the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region and globally.
The report shows a surge in New Zealand’s medical trend rate, rising from 7.4% in 2024 to a projected 14.5% in 2025. This increase marks one of the most substantial year-over-year changes.
In the Asia-Pacific region, New Zealand’s medical trend rate was the second-highest in 2025, with Kazakhstan in Central Asia topping the list at 22%.
The global medical trend rate is forecasted to average 10% in 2025, slightly below the 10.1% peak in 2024, which was the largest increase predicted in the past decade.
According to the report, the Asia-Pacific region and North America are anticipated to see major jumps in medical trend rates, with APAC rising to 11.1% (from 9.7% in 2024) and North America increasing to 8.8% (from 7.6% in 2024).
“In 2024, there was a larger-than-expected rise in claimable events and procedures, which had a sizable effect on the industry. The long-awaited impact of COVID-19 was also finally felt, as many policyholders caught up on delayed healthcare from 2020 to 2023,” Aon health leader for New Zealand, Anson Davies, said.
Davies also stated that general inflation significantly affected the cost of medical care, particularly in New Zealand, which experienced high inflation rates in 2023-24. This, combined with ongoing strain on the public healthcare system, has driven more individuals to seek private healthcare, thereby contributing to medical inflation.
“Taking into account these rising medical trends, it’s vital that employers, policymakers, and insurers collaborate to find sustainable healthcare solutions that balance quality care and cost,” concluded Davies.
About the Report
Aon’s 2025 Global Medical Trend Rates Report is based on data gathered from 112 Aon locations that provide broking, administration, or advisory services for employer-sponsored medical plans.
The trend rate figures in this report represent the anticipated percentage increases in medical plan unit costs (for both insured and self-insured plans) “that are anticipated to be required to address projected price inflation, technology advances in the medical field, plan utilisation patterns, and cost shifting from social programs in each covered location.”