ICEA Lion launches cancer cover for Sh165 per month

ICEA Lion Group has launched cancer insurance cover with premiums from Sh165 a month as the incidence of the disease increases, deepening the burden on the pocket to offset the hefty medical bills.

Business development and technical services general manager George Nyakundi said the product, Kenya’s first stand-alone cover for cancer, will cater for financial needs of patients from diagnosis, treatment, surgery to palliative care and relapse.

World Health Organisation Globocan report for last year showed cancer kills 32,987 Kenyans a year, with 45,000 new cases also being reported.

This has put a financial strain on families.

“Cancer management and treatment can be very expensive, averaging Sh2.5 million.

“We have designed a product that is affordable to save families from the agony of selling property or fundraising to meet treatment,” said Mr Nyakundi.

The premiums will vary depending on gender, age, habits, the period of the cover and medical history. For instance, 18-year-old male non-smokers seeking a sum assured of Sh1 million will start with premiums of Sh165 while smokers at the same age will pay Sh370 a month. Female non-smokers at the same age will start with Sh170 while smokers will pay Sh400.

The premiums are renewable each year, rising gradually with age. Male non-smokers at 40 years seeking Sh1 million sum assured will contribute Sh2,000 a month while their females will part with about Sh2,700 a month.

Upon being diagnosed, the insured receives 10 per cent of the sum assured. Additional pay-outs are made for chemotherapy, radiotherapy, surgery, relapse and palliative care up to 65 years.

Mr Nyakundi said the cover comes with inbuilt remission bonus and also covers benign brain tumours with an additional 10 per cent of the sum assured.

The cover is open to Kenyans of between 18 and 59 years who have been cancer-free for a year before taking up the cover. It comes with an assured sum of between Sh1 million and Sh15 million depending on premiums contributed.

“If at the terminal end the disease the insured cannot fend for themselves, we will pay the balance of any unclaimed balance up to 100 per cent,” he said.