Beyond the Boundaries of Insurance Strategies: A case of NCD- related insurance policies in Sri Lanka

Abstract

Chronic Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) are the world's number one cause of death and disability. Forty-one million people die yearly due to NCDs, equivalent to 71% of all deaths globally due to a lack of treatments. Low spending power, unavailability of medicines, equipment, and facilities, and nonexistence of awareness can be considered as the causes for the lack of treatments.The number of individuals in the general population, including younger age groups, who become victims of non-communicable diseases is also getting into alarming situations in Sri Lanka. As such, expenses for the health services and medical treatments they must bear are increasing. Thus, the general public who suffers from NCDs wishes to seek medical insurance coverage to mitigate the risk. However, quite unrealistic in the present scenario as the insurance company policies and procedures are still premature to treat such people as valuable customers.This paper explains how lack of awareness of the insurers, the non-availability of insurance products for customers who suffer from NCDs, and the absence of SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures) create an uncomfortable situation. Later, by considering all these facts as a problem in the insurance industry in Sri Lanka, a set of solutions has been proposed to overcome the circumstances. At the end of the analysis, the insurance company can recognize that the effort would be an opportunity-driven exercise rather than finding solutions to a problem.