CARVAAN (COFFLE)

One of the biggest development challenge in Pakistan is the lack of a proper health safety net, with an under-resourced public health infrastructure. 

Government of Pakistan, spending less than 4% of its GDP on healthcare services, which is around 10% of the recommended World Health Organization (WHO) level. Consequently, ~81% of all health-care expenditures are out-of-pocket (with ~16% government expenditure and ~2% other private expenditure), and ‘catastrophic’ medical expenses (e.g. for heart attacks, strokes, pregnancy complications, cancer, etc.) are a major precipitant of generational poverty. In such circumstances, life-savings are wiped out, children are pulled out of school and often subjected to urban child labor, and a vicious cycle of poverty is perpetuated.

Pakistan, like many other emerging economies has recently witnessed rapid urbanization. Currently 38% of the population lives in urban areas, increasing at a rate of 5% every year, as cities experience an influx of economic migrants from rural areas in search of jobs. Against this backdrop, there is increasing inequality in health-care accessibility between the non-poor and poor, with quality, private hospitals and clinics unaffordable and an absence of government support for an inadequate, understaffed and an over-burdened public health-care system.

Approximately 110 million low-income lives in Pakistan are currently connected to corporations, businesses and individuals in some manner, engaged as daily-wage laborers, chefs, servers, domestic help, farmers, micro-retailers, distributors etc. and earning between $100-$150 per month.

To addressing this problem, Carvaan (Karwan e Shifa) started work large and small enterprises, MNCs and corporate value chains (smallholder suppliers, distributors, SME retailers, micro-retailers, etc.) to provide a technology-enabled healthcare solution to their low-income & middle class workers, third party staff, factory & domestic workers and their families). 

We designed a following end-to-end quality healthcare solution for these low-income workers and middle class families:

1. First we cover's the major surgeries, catastrophic diseases and traumas by giving low cost insurance product to employer for their workers with collaboration of top insurance, micro insurers of  Pakistan. That gives access to our members of cashless health-care services at over 500 high-quality private hospitals, clinics, labs, diagnostic centers and pharmacies across Pakistan. The health insurance plan covers all hospitalization, including all trauma, inpatient emergencies, day procedures (e.g. colonoscopy), and ambulatory surgery. It also covers all outpatient expenses within 30 days of hospitalization that are associated with the hospitalization event. The CARVAAN health & wellness plan costs less than USD 2 per person per month.

2. Introduces online web platform & mobile app for members, so they can get online medical services, e.g. Online order and delivery of monthly prescribed medicines, access of lab reports and lab services, fix an appointment with their doctor, submit and get insurance claim with 24 hours through online banking platform.  

3. Partnerships with many diagnostics centers, Outpatient clinic and pharmacies to get substantial discount offers for our members.  

4. We do conduct health screening sessions at workplace of our registered members to filter patients who have some pre-existing or un-identified disease, this early detection not only help to patient but to the whole echo system, its reduces the cost insurance company & sponsor too.

5. At start we deliver Awareness sessions of this health and wellness program which help members to understand how to use it, what benefits are in this and how to get benefit, specially people doesn't know about the insurance in Pakistan.

6. We not only cure but works on medical preventions as well. we do medical workshops at their workplace to prevent them possible diseases and situations. Mental Health, Hygiene, Family Planning, Breast Cancers, Rare disease and Pandemics etc. are our focusing topics.

So this is a complete health and wellness solution for low income & middle class families who are currently unable to get quality health access. This end-to-end solution covers the major surgeries, hospitalizations expense, outpatient test, pharmacy expense, free medical checkup, preventive medical education all at one digital platform of CARVAAN.

1. We are trying to improve standard of life by providing good quality healthcare system for SME employees and their families. For that, we want to expand our subsidized digital micro healthcare program for low-income SME  employees and their families. 
2. If an employee have access of quality healthcare system for the whole family, he can work better with mental piece and produce good results, which helps to over all the economy but mainly it helps towards good healthy society.
3.  This healthcare system also gives financial stability to employee by stop selling his assets and saving his bank account which he can spend on the education of their children and other expenses for better future of the family.
4. This helps to improve unemployment in the country and employee retention in the industry.
5. Digital payments gives more authentications and channelized payment system financial inclusion.

We have a team with full of experience under micro healthcare segment who work as followed:

1. Our field representative visit's the SME corporate office or factory and asses the healthcare needs according to the work nature and other demographics.

2. We have insurance experts who design a best possible insurance product.

3. Trainers conduct awareness sessions at employees workplace and brief them about the usage how, when & where to make sure the maximum use of it.

4. Data entry office of IT section start registration of members in our already developed mobile app and give access to them individually to start getting benefits.

5. CARVAAN medical team again visits the workplace of employee and conduct health screening session to detect un-diagnosed disease and arrange the best treatment solution to avoid any mishap for his family (this early detection helps not only to employee but to insurer and employer as well). That screening and treatment detail available to employee only (on his smartphone through mobile App).

6. Our doctors provide preventive medical workshops on-site and via social media, v-logs.

7. We have our own insurance claim team who helps all enrolled members to get insurance claim directly into their bank account in 24 hours.

8. 24/7 customer helpline available for all registered members, they can get assistance in any medical emergency situation.

1. We successfully 9631 families are already enrolled in this CARVAAN solution.
2. Mainly 84% of them are working in different SMEs and retailers.
3. There 342 SME and retailers (employers) are enrolled in this CARVAAN.
4. 73% are male members, we are looking to enroll more women dominating organization.
5. 59% members belong to urban areas and rest are from rural areas of Pakistan. Our target is to expand this solution for rural areas.

1. We are looking to engage more healthcare service providers and develop new additional features in our mobile app such as Tele-medicine, team of online doctors, GPs and specialist to enhance the capability of mobile app to create more value for registered members.
2. Need references in global health, tech industry and to add team players from digital health specialists ideally with a technical background, to provide mentorship and advice around company strategy, operations, and growth.
3. Support and guidance in pitch review materials for upcoming pre-seed finding and other funding opportunities.

Out of 8 full time members, four are women's with the approach of gender equality.

We have good diversification in a team of 8, consisting two top insurance experts, two medical doctors, three field operation experts and include one software engineer.

We provide care and cure in terms of comprehensive health solution for the low-income and middle class workrs at SME, retailers, factories, smallholders etc.

We got signed low cost microinsurance products with top insurance companies in Pakistan and reaching out employers to signoff the deals, and earns marketing commissions from insurance companies.

Since Insurance companies were unable tap that uninsured low-income segment and they are capturing good uninsured market via CARVAAN. they are sharing good profit margin with us.

We are working on B2B model at the moment but soon we will introduce B2C product as well.

Currently in Pakistan only >10% population have health cover, that means around 200 million people need this.

We already cross the breakeven and now moving towards financial profitability. We always believed on selling products and in last three years we never waited for grants, funding or government support. However for expanding capabilities raising investment may be a good opportunity for us.

But in the long-term we are looking to enroll at-least 5 million people in this program (remember there is untapped market of 200 million people).  

Just an example one of our employee enrolled 10 retailers in this program having 20 employees each and he earned 60k as a marketing compensation. Which is fa better in comparison of minimum wage of govt of Pakistan i.e. 25k a month. It is also better the fair living of 55k a month (bench mark set by Unilever Pakistan and other MNCs recently).

We have currently 10k (approx) registered members B2B model and already passed breakeven stage, now looking further organizational expansion and business growth in parallel.