India’s #InsuremyMS campaign

The MS Society of India’s (MSSI) 2024 campaign #InsureMyMS is advocating for better MS insurance coverage across the country. Only a fraction of insurance plans in India covers chronic conditions like MS, leaving people with MS to bear overwhelming expenses whilst navigating a system that does not meet their needs. Results from a national MSSI survey in 2021 revealed that none of the survey participants with MS managed to secure insurance coverage via the government, with claims being consistently rejected post-diagnosis.

When Jaya Mathew from MSSI’s Bengaluru Chapter was diagnosed with MS, she found out that the high costs of medication and treatment weren’t covered by her insurance. This left her vulnerable to financial strain and impacting her ability to access essential diagnostic services, treatment, and support.

Whilst there are efforts to make health insurance in India more inclusive of people with disabilities, gaps remain in the accessibility and affordability of such coverage. A recent insurance policy developed for people with disabilities in India comes with a high premium, limited coverage and is not provided by many insurance companies. There is a waiting period of two years, and many of these policies are restricted to people with a Minimum Benchmark Disability Certificate in India. Many people with MS struggle to attain this official certificate due to poor recognition of invisible symptoms.

MSSI believe that living with MS in India should not prevent essential care, so it started a campaign for action. In February it made insurance the theme of India MS Day. The official #InsureMyMS campaign was then launched on 28 June for National Insurance Awareness Day.

The campaign advocates for every person with MS to have access to fair, transparent and comprehensive insurance coverage, regardless of their financial background. Through online actions, the campaign is raising awareness about insurance coverage gaps for people with MS. By sharing powerful personal stories and mobilising a community of advocates, MSSI is pushing for urgent policy reforms to transform the health insurance landscape in India.

‘Right to health is right to life’ – Smitha from MSSI Chennai shares her reasons for supporting the #InsureMyMS campaign with a video on social media

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by MS Society of India (@mssocietyindia)

As part of the campaign MSSI appealed to representation at the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) along with the National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP) to raise awareness of these issues for people living with MS.

The #InsureMyMS campaign has been effective in engaging key stakeholders, disability organisations, people with MS, and carers on the challenges without MS health insurance. You can learn more about this campaign and MSSI’s wider advocacy work on it’s website.