- The county government started Kang’ata Care programme in 2022 and currently covers over 42,000 households from poor and vulnerable families.
- Under the programme, beneficiaries access free inpatient and out-patient services together with optical and dental services.
Image: Alice Waithera
Murang’a county government has announced plans to outsource its employees medical cover to the private sector once the Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) is implemented.
The county administration also plans to outsource some components of its free medical insurance programme dubbed Kang’ata Care to the private sector.
The administration has said the components that are currently being covered by NHIF will not be covered by SHIF that is set to be implemented by the national government.
The county government started Kang’ata Care programme in 2022 and currently covers over 42,000 households from poor and vulnerable families.
Under the programme, beneficiaries access free inpatient and out-patient services together with optical and dental services.
Additionally, the covered households are provided with a ‘last expense’ insurance cover that pays the families Sh100,000 annually if they lose a member of the nuclear family and Sh50,000 if they lose their in-laws.
According to Governor Irungu Kang’ata, SHIF will not include an enhanced benefits package and will not offer enhanced last expense coverage, that will be sourced from a private company.
The governor said beneficiaries of the programme together with employees covered by the employee enhanced medical cover have encountered disruptions of medical services.
“About 400 families are currently awaiting last expense pay-outs,” he said, noting that his administration is negotiating with NHIF for the full restoration of the services.
Starting October this year, Kang’ata said his administration plans to outsource the employee medical cover to the private sector and that the procurement process is in high gear.
SHIF is set to standardise charges of medical services across all facilities, both private and public.
Health CS Susan Nakhumicha has said medical services in the country are grossly overpriced and that SHIF will ensure uniformity.
NHIF compensated Sh17,000 for caesarean section births but the figure has been raised to Sh32,000 under SHIF while normal deliveries will be capped at Sh11,200.
The new scheme that is currently undergoing public participation and which is expected to thrust the country forward towards the attainment of Universal Health Coverage, has however elicited mixed reactions from members of the public.
While some have supported it for the harmonised charges, many have criticised it for the scaled down services being covered, wondering whether it’s a ploy for the government to collect more while offering less services.
Some of the issues raised include the failure to cover antenatal visits, the limited number of days covered for inpatients in a household and the raised age factored for screening of both cervical and prostate cancers among others.