Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale has cited fraud and double payment as the main reasons behind the decision to discontinue the Edu Afya programme.
Duale, who was appearing before the Senate plenary, explained that the scheme was being misused.
“As such, it was found to be unsustainable...and the government resolved to consolidate all these special schemes into the Social Health Authority (SHA) benefit package,” he stated on Wednesday.
He was responding to a question by Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna, who wanted to know why the decision that informed the move to collapse it.
The CS was, however, quick to point out that Edu Afya was not the only scheme discontinued, but among several others.
Its consolidation including all other schemes previously managed under the defunct NHIF, he said, was geared at implementing the right to the highest attainable standards for all Kenyans and the right of the child.
Under SHA, Duale explained that students who belong to a household and therefore eligible to benefit from the three funds.
These are-the Primary Health Care Fund, Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) and Emergency, Chronic and Critical Illness Fund (ECCIF). These funds work together to provide comprehensive healthcare coverage for all Kenyans.
The Edu-Afya scheme, designed to provide health insurance for students in public secondary schools in the country, was launched in May 2018.
It was a collaboration between the Ministry of Health and Education, and the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF), renewed annually for a period of five years.
The government paid a premium of Sh1,350 per student per year.
Under the scheme, students were covered for outpatient, inpatient, and emergency care, as well as access to dental and optical services.
Duale, at the same time, defended SHA, terming it efficient and responsive to the needs of all Kenyans.
“Under NHIF, if you rushed to the hospital with an emergency, they would ask for a deposit before they admit. Under SHA, the hospitals are obligated to treat you regardless of whether you have a deposit or not,” he said.
