The Kiambu county government has unveiled a Sh100million medical insurance scheme that will seat at least one million residents guaranteed access to affordable healthcare.
Kiambu governor Kimani Wamatangi who graced the event said that under the proposed scheme, the county government will pay National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) subscriptions for the poor.
Wamatangi said the Universal Health Coverage embodies the right of all people to quality, accessible, affordable and available health services.
“This mass registration exercise seeks to provide affordable, accessible and sustainable medical cover to all residents in the county. This will also ensure that all people access the needed health services of sufficient quality and experience financial risk protection,” he explained.
He urged NHIF to ensure timely reimbursement of funds to public health facilities.
He further announced that his administration was in the process of rehabilitating aged hospital equipment and acquiring new ones to ensure all the 128 public health facilities are able to provide efficient services.
A total of nine new dispensaries will also be built starting January to ensure all the 60 wards have at least one dispensary each while construction of Githunguri and Wangige hospitals which stalled due to non-payment of bills by the previous administration would be completed.
“We want to ensure that besides putting all our people in a health insurance scheme whereby the county government will help vulnerable groups by paying for their Sh500 monthly NHIF subscriptions, all our facilities are in good condition, have the necessary equipment and are stocked with the requisite drugs,” he said.
Kiambu Health executive Joseph Murega called on locals to register with NHIF noting that they stand to benefit from specialised services that will be offered at the county hospitals.
Murega said that the beneficiaries will have access to health services such as communicable and non-communicable disease management, substance abuse rehabilitation, emergency services, and cancer treatment to name but a few.
“Many families who have not enrolled with NHIF have had to sell their property or hold fundraisings to offset medical bills which would have otherwise been sorted by the insurer,” he said.
He said that Kiambu hospitals will get Sh60 million in drug supplies from Kemsa.
