Enhancing SHPI impact via mobile phone-based awareness campaign in Mardan

The Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan established a fully-subsizidised health insurance program covering inpatient hospital services in 2015. The government is currently piloting an extension of the program to selected outpatient services for the poorest households in one district. Households might face awareness challenges related to eligibility, registration, service coverage, and utilization of insurance benefits of the new outpatient insurance. This study employs a randomized controlled design to assess whether targeted phone-based information provision can improve insurance awareness and subsequent program use. Households are randomly assigned to receive informational text messages and automated voice calls or to a control group receiving no intervention. The text messages and voicecalls convey standardized information on outpatient insurance entitlements and reference nearby empaneled health facilities. Outcomes are measured using a midline phone survey and an endline in-person household survey. Primary outcomes include awareness of the new outpatient insurance, knowledge of insurance coverage, registration status, and health care utilization.