This document summarizes a CORE Group Spring Meeting that discussed integrating health and financial services. It provides the following key points: 1) Access to health and financial services can help reduce poverty. Microfinance organizations and savings groups reach many poor clients and health problems are a common reason clients cannot save. 2) High impact health services can be added to microfinance institutions at low cost, with positive impacts for clients and potential to contribute to health goals. Health providers also gain new clients. 3) Freedom from Hunger's work in 10 countries shows over 2 million clients now receive health and financial services through various models. Analysis shows combinations can be low-cost or financially sustainable. 4) Integrating

1. CORE Group Spring Meeting
April 23, 2013
Increasing Capacity for Health Outreach: Linking health,
financial services and microenterprise development

2. Why integrate health and financial services?
• Access and use of health and financial services are key
strategies for reducing poverty
• Microfinance organizations (MFIs) and Savings Groups
(SGs) represent a large global platform and many reach
the very poor
• MFI leaders and agents report that health problems are a
common reasons clients cannot build up assets
• High impact health services can be feasibly added to
MFIs at low cost and with positive impact on clients and
with potential for contributing to MDGs at the community
level
• Health providers gain access to new clients for increased 1

3. A Global Development Initiative
Freedom from Hunger’s work with partners around
the world:
 More than 2 million microfinance and NGO members in 10
countries now receiving a combination of health and
financial services
 Microfinance and health Communities of Practice have been
formed among practitioners in India, Bolivia, Ecuador and
Peru
 Formation of the Microfinance and Health Alliance
 HAMED (Health and Market Development) Working Group
through SEEP Network 2

4. Microfinance as a platform

5. Goal Organization Result
Improved
knowledge for
behavior change to
prevent and
manage illness
Bandhan, India
(health education)
•Significant improvements in
knowledge and behaviors for
breastfeeding, diarrhea mgmt,
and child feeding
Ability to
access appropriate
care
CRECER, Bolivia;
(health fairs)
•24% receiving health service
never had medical care before
Ability to finance
health services
Bandhan, India
(health loans)
CARD, Philippines
(health insurance)
RCPB, Burkina Faso
(health savings, loans)
• 33% would have delayed
treatment without the loan
• 62% felt able to afford other
necessities (food, education)
•Value of insurance to offset
costs
•Increased use of primary care

6. Financially Sustainable Combination
Microfinance and Health Protection
Analysis: Net annual Profit (Loss)
per Member
Direct Costs
Only
Direct and
Allocated Costs
CARD – Microinsurance loans 0.19 (0.57)
RCPB – Health savings and loans (0.03) (4.57)
CARD – Preferred provider program (0.10) (0.17)
CRECER- Health days (mobile providers) (0.52) (0.88)
Bandhan – Health education and health
products
(1.00) (1.73)
AVERAGE (0.29) (1.59)
Integrated microfinance and health protection can be
inexpensive for Microfinance Institutions to offer…

7. • Opportunity to reach larger segment of
population
• Increase market share
• More dependable income flow
Health Care
Providers
• Low cost
• Competitive advantage
• Improved client financial protection and
health
• Social mission
Financial
Institution
• Improved health care knowledge and
behaviors
• More access to health providers and
products
• Greater financial protection
FI Members
and
Families
• Improved health care knowledge and
behaviors
• More access to health providers and
products
Community

8. www.freedomfromhunger.org
www.ffhtechnical.org
Cassie Chandler
cchandler@freedomfromhunger.org

9. Questions
1. How can we strengthen the capacity of both
sectors to work with one another?
2. How might your organization introduce a financial
service component to complement an existing
health program or vice versa? How would this
change the program? What are the
opportunities? What are the challenges?
8