The MILK project partnered with the global insurance intermediary MicroEnsure to study the extent to which a health microinsurance product covering inpatient care offered value to clients in terms of reduced spending and improved access. There is strong evidence that insurance can reduce the out-of-pocket spending for families when large health crises hit (Ekman, 2004; Devadasen et al., 2007; Wagstaff, 2007), features, exactly how benefits are delivered, and the socioeconomic characteristics of the target community. Our findings suggest that while the insurance coverage offered some relief, access to low-cost loans and the ability to divert current income toward the costs of the health crisis remained critical to clients’ ability to finance these costs.
MILK Brief #11: Doing the Math: Health Microinsurance in Maharashtra, India
ByBarbara Magnoni, and Taara Chandani
29 June 2012
MILK Brief #11: Doing the Math: Health Microinsurance in Maharashtra, India