In many occasions, individuals faced with medical emergencies find it difficult to access to treatment due to financial limits demanded by hospitals in the country. To fastrack access and help during emergencies, Resolution Health has come up with a plan to enable patients easily be attended to from as low as Sh70.
Resolution Insurance Kenya Managing Director Alice Mwai says more in an interview below
Q. Please briefly explain what Resolution Ziara Plan is all about.
A. This idea came about to solve the problem that most of us without medical insurance encounter when we are suddenly faced with a medical emergency. One must have ready cash to pay as deposit to a hospital in order to obtain treatment. These amounts range anywhere from Shs. 20,000 to Shs. 150,000 depending on the hospital.
This plan helps the motor vehicle commuter on our roads access emergency medical treatment from a hospital in the unfortunate event of a motor vehicle accident. Upon purchase of the cover, the commuter is given a band to wear on their wrist which has a unique number. This number is used by the hospital to confirm that the commuter has insurance and the hospital proceeds to treat without any charge to the customer.
For Shs.70, you will get a band with a unique number and you are covered for the next of 24 hours upon activating the band. Resolution Insurance enables the person to be treated at a hospital without paying cash to the hospital. It pays upto Shs. 150,000 in emergency medical expenses, and Shs. 30,000 to the beneficiary or next of kin in the unfortunate event of my death.
Q. What are the key differences between the Resolution Ziara Plan and what is currently in the market?
A. the Resolution Ziara Plan is consumed when needed. This is a 24-hour cover that one can purchase before a trip.
It has easy access. This cover is available at the various points of departure i.e. at matatu termini. We are very excited that the members of Matatu Owners Association have come on board as one of our key distribution partners.
It is easy to buy since one utilizes mobile to buy and there are no filling of forms.
It helps hospitals deliver their core mandate without having to worry about collection of debts.
It helps the commuter to travel with peace-of-mind and sure that should anything happen, they will acquire the necessary emergency medical treatment without delay and hence chances of full recovery are higher.
Q. There is already the Third Party PSV cover. Why would Resolution Insurance introduce Ziara Plan?
A. The Third Party PSV cover takes care of any injuries to third parties and damage to the property of others that may occur as a result of an accident. For one to claim on this cover, there needs to be an assessment of the injury and the costs of treatment. This therefore happens much later after the accident. The Third Party cover is not therefore designed to provide access to care immediately at the time when one needs emergency or is in urgent need for medical treatment.
Q. There are only about 7 percent of Kenyans with any kind of insurance cover. How will the Ziara solution increase insurance uptake and rate of penetration?
A. All of us have risks in life and utilize various tools in managing the impact of those risks. The most common form has been harambees or fundraiser. However, this culture is slowly dying as our society evolves. We now are motivated to contribute to very exceptional circumstances. Insurance is designed to help individuals and businesses to take in the shock of risk events without the heavy financial setbacks that such events bring. One of our key strategic initiatives is to expand financial inclusion in the insurance space. We believe that anyone can utilize insurance to manage their risks if that insurance is designed in a manner that demonstrates value to them. That it is simple to understand, to buy, to use and that the promise that an insurer makes is honoured at the point of need. The Resolution Ziara Plan provides such a product to most of us who have not been insured before.
Q. How much has been invested in the development and roll out of this product?
A. This product has been very exciting to develop but has not been easy. It demands a different thought process than the one that we have always utilized in the insurance space. At Resolution Insurance, we believe that we don’t always have the answers and have therefore spent a lot of time and effort in understanding the needs of the customer and in partnering with others in order to deliver a Ziara Plan that is simple and easy to access. Our partner in development and distribution of this product is Entervene Limited. We have further invested in a technology platform to simplify the purchase of the cover. The medical service provider network is key in ensuring that we deliver what we have promised. We have invested in widening our network especially in the areas that are viewed as accident ‘blackspots’. We plan to utilize our technology platform to settle our claims via mobile money.
Q. What was the inspiration for the Ziara Plan proposition?
A. The Constitution of Kenya 2010 reminds us that the Resolution Ziara Plan is anchored in our Bill of Rights under Article 43. (2): “A person shall not be denied emergency medical treatment.”
This right is not easy to deliver because it is not clear who bears the cost of that emergency treatment. In the absence of that clarity, I as a citizen need to ensure that I can be stabilised in the event that I am injured while travelling in a vehicle.
This was a product that was in our pipeline but the reality of the need and urgency was brought out clearly when a Kenyan spent 18 hours in an ambulance after a traffic accident and finally succumbed to his injuries.
Q. What sort of research and product development was involved in making the Resolution Ziara Plan a viable offering? Why the use of the mobile delivery channel?
A. As I have said earlier, we have invested heavily in research while keeping it simple in order to understand the real need. The problem we are trying to solve (we cannot solve the entire problem) and how well our offering attempts to solve the problem. Having said that, the choice of Mobile is because that is the convenient way the customer now interacts and we need to be as relevant as possible.
Q. Where in Kenya is Ziara currently available and what is the roll-out plan?
A. The Resolution Ziara Plan will be available country wide, basically at any PSV departure point.
Q. What is the long-term view for Resolution Ziara Plan?
A. In the long-term, we plan to expand the scope of Resolution Ziara Plan to other road users, including taxis and private motorists.
Q. The Resolution Ziara Plan works using USSD. Are you planning to extend this to mobile apps for smartphones and if so when will this happen?
We are at the forefront of embracing technology and USSD is available for both smart and feature phones which are still in use in Kenya. We keep close to the customer to understand their changing trends and shall go where they go.
A.In Africa there are countries with PSVs. Are you looking beyond Kenya?
We were pleasantly surprised once we started engaging with Matatu Owners Association at how organized they are. This has enabled quick and easy access for the customer as they have partnered with us as the dealers who shall distribute the bands. We understand that we have the best organised private-owned and controlled PSV sector possibly across the world. We shall obviously be looking for these opportunities across the region.
Q.Please give any other comment on Resolution Insurance Ziara Plan.
A Clearly, Resolution Ziara Plan is a game changer. We believe it will make our lives easier and better. It is a plan that every Kenyan should have.
