Microfinance Gateway>Can Micro Health Insurance Reduce Poverty? Evidence from Bangladesh

affiliate language sites: Français عربي Español

Home

Library

Jobs

Training and Events

Organizations

Consultants

Library » Can Micro Health Insurance Reduce Poverty? Evidence from Bangladesh

Can Micro Health Insurance Reduce Poverty? Evidence from Bangladesh
Jan 2010, Hamid, S., Roberts, J. & Mosley, P.

Analyzing impact of adding microhealth insurance to microcredit

This paper examines the impact of micro health insurance on poverty reduction in the rural areas of Bangladesh.

Support for supplementing microcredit with other services that improve program effectiveness has been increasing due to evidence that microcredit does not help the poorest of the poor. One such service is micro health insurance (MHI), which protects vulnerable people form health shocks. The Grameen Bank (GB) in Bangladesh added an MHI scheme in the late 1990s to protect its clients from health risks. This paper examines the impact of adding the MHI to GB’s microcredit program on poverty. It considers the following indicators relating to household poverty status:

Household income;
Stability of household income through food sufficiency and ownership of non-land assets;
Probability of being above or below the poverty line.

The study uses data collected from a survey of 329 households in three areas where GB operates microcredit programs. Study results show that micro health insurance has a positive association with all of these indicators.

Add Review


*First Name:		*Last Name:
Organization:
*Email:
*Country:
(rollover stars to select rating)
Review Title:

Review Text:
I do not want my name, email, or organization to appear with my review. (Country will always appear with posted reviews.)

By clicking "Submit" you confirm that you have read and consent to our Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions.

Download this Document

Publisher(s):
University of Sheffield