Taita Taveta county plans to use community health volunteers to enlist residents into the National Hospital Insurance Fund in efforts to promote Universal Healthcare coverage.
County executive for health Daniel Makoko said the department has trained over 500 volunteers under the programme dubbed Afya Bora Mashinani
Makoko said the health volunteers will collect data from the public to enable the county government to streamline the health sector.
The county executive said the majority of the patients were unable to access health services for lack of money.
“We want to ensure that every resident is able to access health services since the scheme shall cater for all the expenses,” Makoko said.
Makoko said over 48,000 people had registered for NHIF by December last year, and that the new programme targets to benefit at least 25,000 households.
He urged the public to cooperate with the department in ensuring that everyone is covered by NHIF.
Governor Granton Samboja said the Afya Bora Mashinani programme will ensure that residents have access to a progressive health benefits package.
It will also increase the availability and coverage of quality health services, he said.
Samboja said that the county government is committed to actualising the Sustainable Development Goal 3 on ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for all.
“The move to devolve the health services has come with a lot of challenges, the most remarkable one being the cost of the services,” the county boss said.
The high costs had led to patients missing out on services or being detained in hospitals after being discharged, for lack of money,” Samboja said.
The county chief said that the programme seeks to reach 80 per cent of the residents in the next three months and shall focus on preventive care and promote health intervention.
The governor said that all subcounty hospitals shall be expanded and more equipment and drugs procured to cater for the increased uptake.
Affordable healthcare is among President Uhuru Kenyatta’s Big 4 Agenda.
(edited by O. Owino)
