Mukhtar urges NHIF to provide quality services

Wajir Governor Ahmed Mukhtar has urged the National Hospital Insurance Fund to organise periodic consultative meetings between health providers and county leadership.

The meetings aim to improve delivery of quality and timely health services to the clients.

This will also help in sealing all loopholes of misuse of the funds so as to reach to as many beneficiaries as possible.

Mukhtar on Wednesday said as it stands there are many grey areas that need to fixed.

He was speaking at Leheley subcounty hospital during the launch of biometric registration of the indigents for Universal Health Coverage.

"The Constitution of Kenya spells out the right of every Kenyan to quality health care services without sinking deeper into poverty due to ill health and lack of finances to pay for health services.

"This is well encapsulated in the Universal Health Coverage pillar of the President’s Big Four Agenda, with NHIF being the vehicle of delivery for Kenyans,” the governor said.

The governor disclosed that 21,568 vulnerable households have been identified in Wajir county, who will be registered biometrically this week.

This he said is a small percentage of the estimated 107,840 poor households in the county.

He said the current drought being experienced in the county might affect coverage during the weeklong registration exercise.

The governor appealed to the chiefs, ward and subcounty administrators, health workers and local leaders to voluntarily mobilise the identified beneficiaries.

Where possible the leaders should locate the mobile settlements for pastoralists who fled with their livestock in pursuit of pasture and water.

He requested  NHIF to open more offices especially those that are far-flung from the county headquarters.

Wajir East MP Rashid Kassim said the registration process will ensure that indigents and vulnerable households are identified and biometrically registered.

This will create a platform for easy identification and verification whenever they have to access health care services at accredited NHIF health facilities.

The proposed NHIF amendment Bill 2021 will specifically ensure those who can pay remittances do so to guarantee every Kenyan is covered.

(Edited by Bilha Makokha)