Kenyans residing in rural areas may find themselves compelled to supplement their medical expenses if the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) fails to disburse funds to healthcare facilities.
The threat arises as rural hospitals contemplate requiring beneficiaries to make additional cash payments starting next week on Friday.
The Rural Private Hospitals Association of Kenya (RUPHA) National Chairperson Brian Lishenga in a notice on Friday said NHIF owes hospitals more than Sh15 billion.
This substantial debt has had a detrimental impact on the quality of healthcare services nationwide, leading to financial strain on hospital suppliers.
Lishenga noted that the non-payment of healthcare providers represents a persistent and clear breach of the facilities’ agreement with NHIF.
“Six months of healthcare providers holding out a begging bowl. Patience as providers awaited the new health bills. Sick patients getting less than what was promised. Suppliers to hospitals going bankrupt,” the statement reads.
“As a result of the board’s failure to honour its financial commitment, health facilities are left with no other resource but to issue immediate notice that beneficiaries of the NHIF schemes will be required to make top-up cash payments in order to access services effective from December 15, 2023,” it adds.
This marks a recurring issue where rural health facilities express dissatisfaction with the delayed payments from the national health insurer.
In April, healthcare facilities situated in rural areas issued a warning, indicating their intention to initiate charges for beneficiaries of programs such as Linda Mama, Edu Afya, and police officers who depend on their services.
They decried the failure of some insurers to remit funds on time and threatened to transfer bills to patients at a cost of Sh1,000 per visit.
“Hospitals in the rural parts of Kenya are closing, workers have gone for three months or more without salaries, auctioneers are at the doors of those hospitals,” Lishenga said in April.
Days after, Faith-based health institutions also gave the NHIF and the CIC insurance consortium an ultimatum to release Sh2 billion in claims accrued over time.
Normalcy resumed in various hospitals across the country after the National Treasury released the funds the government owes NHIF in June.
