The controversial universal health care plan, the Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF), officially begun at midnight tonight, but there are pending concerns on how deductions for unsalaried households would be undertaken.
- •The National Assembly Health Committee grilled Health Cabinet Secretary Deborah Barasa yesterday, as well as other key ministerial figures tasked with the anticipated implementation of the new health care plan.
- •While it was clear that salaried individuals will have 2.75% of their salaries deducted, it was unclear how the government would pursue contributions from households with no steady flow of income.
- •The Ministry of Health also had to explain the framework that would determine how much every household had to contribute to the fund, but the explanations were poor and largely vague.
“We conducted the Means Testing Instrument in eight counties and the data that we have is accurate and we assure you we will not have the same issues we are facing in the education sector,” said the acting chairman Social Health Authority, Abdi Mohammed.
The Means Testing Instrument, according to the Health officials, took into account 17 variables that would be accurate enough to categorize different households in bands almost similar to the new universities’ funding model (a controversial plan on its own right).
Some of the counties factored in the MTI project were Turkana, Tana River, Narok, Migori, Bungoma, Bomet, Kiambu and Nairobi. Deborah Barasa said in haste that the testing instrument was assuredly better and impervious to fault, a conclusive assertion that did little to prune the legislators’ skepticism.
MPs were dissatisfied with Deborah Barasa’s explanations, which were embellished in elusive terms and a pacy desire to deflect questions. They demanded to know how the common man will pay his share of the fund, adding that failure to provide practical explanations deepened the confusion ahead of the rollout.
“A roll out that is expected tomorrow should not be based on theory but clear examples on how the common mwananchi will pay the premiums and why are they being subjected to pay annual premiums,” said Chuka Igambangombe MP Patrick Munene (UDA).
Last week, Afya House missed a media briefing it’d called for at the JW Mariott in Westlands, Nairobi.
What the SHIF?
With these queries and others lingering in the minds of Kenyans, the Health Committee established that the tender of the KSh 104 billion health digitization project was satisfactorily awarded. The Integrated Information Technology System for Universal Healthcare – which was taken up by Safaricom, Apiero Ltd., and Konvergenz Network Solutions – did not receive a formal consent letter from the Attorney General’s office.
This morning, Busia senator Okiya Omtatah, Eliud Matindi, and Magare Gikenyi filed a petition in court to halt the implementation of SHIF and the deal with Safaricom. According to Omtatah, the purported contract that between Safaricom and the government is a ploy to steal money from SHIF.
Four days ago, a meeting convened by the Ministry of Health and the private sector on Friday to brief media on the 1st October 2024 migration from the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) to Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) was abruptly cancelled without a clear explanation.
The Ministry of Health reports that just over 1.5 million people have transitioned to SHIF so far. That figure still dwarfs the NHIF registration which stands at about 12 million. It does not help that SHIF is entangled in a web of uncertainty and improper communication.
Many Kenyans have challenged the health care plan, citing concerns that it will be under the wraps of fraudulent interests. Others have cast doubt on the extent of coverage. A popular disc jockey, DJ Krowbar, claimed that dialysis patients including his wife were asked to pay KSh 9,500 – a procedure that was paid for under NHIF.
The Social Health Authority (SHA) running the fund has clarified this morning in a meagre statement that under SHIF, no Kenyan will be denied access to dialysis and cancer treatment. As controversy continues to scuttle every attempt of the government to forge a meaningful message, Kenyans are even wondering if the Health Ministry understands the program at all.
Some Kenyans have also reported errors in the system despite the government’s assurance that bridging the information under NHIF to SHIF will be seamless. While the plan looks beneficial on paper, upholding consistent contributions and proving to Kenyans that corruption will not be eminent in the new plan will be tough task for the Ministry of Health.