30 percent of Cambodians live below the poverty line – on less than a dollar a day. That means they cannot afford to get sick. Since doctor visits are normally paid out of their own pocket, such high costs often drive people further into poverty and the need to sell their land. Yet, a mere one percent of the population has access to public health insurance – a system which has only recently been introduced. For this reason, people in rural or remote regions resort to traditional healers or try to heal themselves. However, in an area with a high incidence of diseases like malaria, dengue, tuberculosis as well as malnutrition, proper health care is indispensable. Community-based health insurance offers a solution to this problem by providing a low-cost alternative to private health care. This insurance costs six dollars per person per year; two dollars a year are subsidized, so the insured person covers the remaining four dollars. The insurance covers free treatment in health facilities, reimburses transportation costs to the hospital as well as the costs for delivering babies in health clinics. To make sure all groups are able to take advantage of the system – especially women, children and the elderly – membership in the health insurance system is only possible for the entire family.

Volunteer promoters take on an essential role within this project. They are not only responsible for acquiring new members and collecting premiums, but also function as a link to the village community. The volunteers also give recommendations on how to improve the quality of the health care facilities. Our local partners, the Cambodian Health Committee (CHC), work closely together with volunteers, advise and train them as well as regularly visit them in their villages.

Until the end of 2015, Malteser International plans to insure a total of 25,000 people in two districts of Siem Reap province. More than 6,000 persons already own an insurance card. They pay their premiums at the beginning of the year directly after the harvest, and thus avoid the danger of extremely high expenditures in the case of an illness.