Insurance firm GA launches Sh100,000 Covid-19 cover

GA Insurance Thursday launched a product that offers Sh100,000 to policy holders who contract Covid-19.

The beneficiaries will paid the cash after 16 days of paying the Sh3,000 annual premium, locking individuals who contract the disease within the set period.

Chief executive Sandeep Bhaduri said product is meant to ease medical bills and offer compensations to persons hospitalised or forced to go on quarantine after testing positive.

GA said for one to benefit from the cover, he or she must be admitted for a day in hospital as well as be certified to have contracted Covid-19.

“This policy is intended to provide a coping mechanism to the financial distress that one might be facing when infected with Covid-19 and then hospitalised,” he said.

Mr Bhaduri added that only Kenyans aged between 18 years to 60 years are eligible.

“The insured must not have any pre-existing respiratory medical condition and must not have travelled outside Kenya 60 days prior to inception or during the policy subsistence period,” he said.

Insurers initially were fearful of offering covers or extending their policies to cover effects of Covid-19 pandemic.

London judges on Tuesday ruled that some of the world’s biggest insurers were wrong to reject tens of thousands of claims from small firms battered by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Insurers across the globe have argued that most policies did not cover the pandemic, that they were paying out valid claims as quickly as possible and that being forced to stump up for all losses from the pandemic would be catastrophic for the insurance industry, and its backup, the reinsurance industry.

Kenyans found with Covid-19 have complained of hefty medical bills that many pay out of pockets as underwriters shun the pandemic citing a clause that waives their culpability on settling medical bills for pandemic victims who hold medical covers.

GA, which has subsidiaries in Uganda and Tanzania, said the newly launched Covid-19 benefit cover is a standalone product that was approved by the Insurance Regulatory Authority last month.

Since last March, Kenya has recorded 23,529 recoveries, confirmed 36,393 Covid-19 cases while 637 Kenyans had lost their lives as of Wednesday evening with 504,988 Kenyans having undergone the test.