The Kenya Kwanza cabinet has repealed the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) and replaced it with three separate funds. The funds shall be; the Primary Health Care Fund, Social Health Insurance Fund, and the Emergency, Chronic, and Critical Illness Fund.
The aim of the Kenya Kwanza government is to accelerate universal health coverage.
A despatch issued by State House Spokesperson Hussein Mohamed indicated that the Bills; Primary Health Care Bill, 2023; Digital Health Bill, 2023; Facility Improvement Financing Bill, 2023; and Social Health Insurance Bill, 2023 would be transmitted to Parliament for approval.
“These Bills usher in a paradigm in the legal and institutional framework for healthcare in Kenya by repealing the current National Health Insurance Fund and establishing in its place the following funds: Primary Healthcare Fund; Social Health Insurance Fund; and Emergency, Chronic and Critical Illness Fund,” said the Cabinet.
The Digital Health Bill, according to the Cabinet Dispatch, will enable the development of standards towards the provision of m-health, telemedicine, and e-learning in healthcare.
“This new architecture is expected to provide a framework for improved health outcomes and financial protection of families in fidelity to the State’s solemn duty to guarantee the health and welfare of all her citizens,” noted the Cabinet.
