Enroll with NHIF to get hospital bills covered, Oguna ask Kenyans

Government Spokesperson Cyrus Oguna has urged Kenyans to enroll under the National Health Insurance Fund to enable them to access health services at lower costs within the government-owned health facilities.

Speaking in Bomet County during his visit for the inspection of government projects, Oguna affirmed that the government has continued to pursue its goal of improving the well-being of Kenyans by rolling out diverse projects across the country.

“There is a need for Kenyans to register under National Health Insurance Fund cover to enable them to access health services in government facilities, our government and other stakeholders are working together to improve and better the lives of Kenyans,” Oguna said.

Oguna noted that Longisa County Referral Hospital is offering top-notch medical health services ranging from dialysis, cancer screening, and the specialized clinic for chronic diseases among others.

However, due to the low income earned by Kenyans, most of them have been in a position of affording services like dialysis that goes for Ksh 9500 per session.

Statistics from the NHIF indicate only 220,000 people within Bomet County have enrolled under the National health fund.

The hospital's medical superintendent Dr. Isaac Birechi said that they have been forced to ask patients to register for NHIF to enable them to pay for their dialysis and other services like CT scans.

“For most of the patients who come for specialized care, we do urge them to enroll to first enrollment with NHIF, and we do this to enable them to continue accessing the services,” Birechi said.

About 10,000 residents in the county have been registered under the National health scheme by the county government, registering some of the most vulnerable and poverty-hit households into the scheme.