NAIROBI, Kenya, June 8- Adoption of self-service, telemedicine, and the use of a chart board platform are some of the ways that insurance firms can explore to continue interacting with their customers at a time when coronavirus pandemic has interrupted normal human interaction.
Head of Digital at Resolution Insurance Francis Ngari told Capital Business that despite the novelty of telemedicine in the market, the solution has the ability to generate income to the sector. “Telemedicine is slowly picking up in Kenya and if properly utilized, it will push the insurance sector through this season,” Ngari said.
According to Ngari, the industry has noted a downward trend on claims from Hospitals since Kenya reported it’s first coronavirus case in March. “The number of those visiting hospitals has continued to decline, making revenue targets non-achievable,” he added.
This comes at a backdrop of a finding by the government that Kenyans are shying away from seeking healthcare services from hospitals, in fear of contracting the virus. The medical insurance sector has remained the second largest of insurance businesses after motor insurance.
However, it has over time remained a loss-making segment based on price undercutting, high hospital bills, and fraud. In 2018, the sector was reporting losses of up to Sh1 billion.
So far, the Ministry of Health announced on Sunday that the county’s coronavirus infections rose to 2767 after 167 more people tested positive for the disease.
News Culled from Capitalfm
