Of the 48 million Ugandans, only about half a million people have health insurance, which leaves most vulnerable to unexpected medical expenses that can destroy the family budget.
According to Israel Arinaitve, head of retail banking at Stanbic Bank, the updated product is designed to provide insurance protection not only to corporate employees, who make up the bulk of the insured. «Less than 5% of Ugandan citizens have medical policies. It is especially alarming that the majority of insured persons are participants in corporate programs. It is important that residents start taking care of their safety, which is why Medi-Protect was created for this purpose», Arinaitve said.
The World Health Organization notes that 38% of the cost of medical services in Uganda falls on the population, which is why households are forced to use their savings for diseases. The updated insurance offer includes three types of protection: a personal policy, a family agreement, and a new format for hospitalization. Dogo Singh from Stanbic Bank explained that the changes are based on an analysis of demand and the market situation.
The amount of payments under the Silver Plus tariff has increased from 18.5 to 58 million shillings, and the Platinum Plus plan provides outpatient and inpatient treatment to 294 million shillings. Additional guarantees include compensation for severe diagnoses, life insurance, disability, education funding for four heirs, and funeral expenses. The family program allows multiple relatives to receive protection under one contract, reducing the cost of the policy with each new family member.
The inpatient care tariff assumes an annual fee of 350,000 shillings and covers hospital bills of up to 29 million shillings, as well as protects against death, disability and serious illnesses. According to the project participants, such accessibility makes insurance real for the poor for the first time. Paul Nagemi from Prudential Uganda emphasized that the goal of the initiative is not only to sell policies, but also to provide high-quality medical care at an affordable price. He noted that medical crises often destroy family budgets, prevent children from studying and disrupt financial planning, so the link between health and economic stability has become the basis of this product.
Uganda's health insurance coverage remains minimal compared to other East African countries. Current policies are unevenly distributed, concentrated mainly in Kampala, and are only available to officially employed citizens through employer-sponsored corporate programs. Analysts consider banking and insurance partnerships, where credit institutions sell insurance products through their retail chains, to be the most promising tool to address this imbalance.
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