Why Ebola will not void your health insurance cover, for now
People walk outside the Nairobi Hospital where the first Ebola patient had been admitted before he died in Nairobi, Kenya, October 6, 2026.
People diagnosed with Ebola in Kenya will remain covered by their health insurers, who treat the disease like any other illness unless it is declared an epidemic in the country.
Despite the growing threat coming a day after Kenya confirmed its first imported case of Bundibugyo Ebola virus disease, insurers say the development does not automatically trigger exclusions on health insurance policies in Kenya.
The imported case involved a Kenyan who had been living in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where the disease is classified as an epidemic. The Ministry of Health said it had identified 28 contacts, while tracing passengers and crew who travelled on the same flight with the patient who succumbed on Tuesday.
Njeri Jomo, chief executive of Jubilee Health Insurance, which is the country’s largest health insurer by premiums, said insurers would generally treat Ebola as an ordinary illness as long as the disease does not become an epidemic in Kenya.
“Ideally it is covered. Because it is not something that has been dealt with before, it will be treated like any other normal illness. Perhaps Kenyans are discussing Ebola significantly because it is an epidemic in another country,” Ms Jomo said.
Ms Jomo explained that insurers would be expected to pay claims arising from individual cases, with the risk becoming more significant if Ebola develops into a wider outbreak.
The Association of Kenya Insurers (AKI) said despite the growing threat that Ebola might spread into the country, the confirmation of an imported case does not automatically trigger exclusions on health insurance policies in Kenya.
“Until it is declared as an epidemic, that is when things change, but otherwise currently it is just like any other illness when it comes to medical insurance,” said William Kiama, AKI manager for general insurance business.
Ms Njeri said the major uncertainty for insurers now is how reinsurers will respond if the disease spreads in the country and claims become significant. The market players are awaiting guidance from their reinsurers on whether Ebola-related claims would fall within existing reinsurance arrangements.
“Most insurers are waiting for confirmation from reinsurers because the biggest risk is you could see that it is covered and then your insurer says your treatment does not incorporate it,” she said.
The Ebola outbreak in DRC has grown to thousands of cases and deaths, with the World Health Organisation declaring a Public Health Emergency of International Concern over the outbreak.
Kenya's Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale has also said the country does not have an Ebola outbreak, describing the case as an imported incident involving a patient who travelled from the DRC.
The distinction could become key for insurers if locally-acquired cases emerge and the government declares a wider outbreak.
The insurers’ position leaves Kenyan policyholders covered for Ebola under existing health insurance arrangements. However, the industry has fresh memories of Covid-19, when a surge in medical claims prompted insurers in many markets to cap utilisation.
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