Healthcare cooperatives around the world: Uganda

Moses Okello lives in Oyam, a rural area in northern Uganda where malaria habitually wreaks havoc. Some time ago, his entire family became ill in the same week. Fortunately, they got better, but the healthcare bill reached 300,000 shillings, around 75 euros. In order to be able to pay this, they would very likely have had to sell some chickens or a goat. However, Moses forms part of a health cooperative that took charge of a large part of the debt and allowed him to keep his animals, which are essential elements in his family economy.
 

In Bushenyi, in Western Uganda, Richard Namara was not as lucky. He and his wife became ill and they had to get into debt that was way beyond their means in order to face up to the medical expenses. Over time, they discovered that there was a health cooperative in their region and they joined it. Thanks to the cooperative, their three children were born in a hospital with the necessary healthcare and without the need to apply for a loan. 

The health system in Uganda

Although Uganda officially has public health services – in theory without any cost for citizens – the reality is that the resources are usually very scarce and the waiting lists never-ending. 

For this reason, every day more Ugandans are joining together, forming cooperatives through which they share the financial risks associated with medical treatments. The cooperative acts as a community fund that manages the members’ dues and negotiates with the healthcare workers and the hospitals, reaching agreements to take care of their members. Currently, there are 18 healthcare cooperatives registered with 35,000 members.  

The American cooperative HealthPartners, in collaboration with the American agency for cooperation with development, introduced the cooperative health insurance model in Uganda over 20 years ago. Currently, it is a deep-rooted model in the local community and that has considerably improved public health.