Amendment to National Hospital Insurance Fund Act Will Expand Health Insurance Coverage in Kenya
July 22, 2016
Supported by USAID's Health Policy Plus project, Kenya's parliamentary health committee adopted an amendment bill to the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) act. The proposed reforms impact delivery and financing of the mandated benefits package (inclusive of FP and HIV) by allowing members to access in and out-patient services in a benefit package, with no cost at the point of use for patients. This supports Kenya's efforts to achieve universal health coverage (UHC) and will facilitate an increase in the number of people who can obtain health insurance at an affordable premium, reducing out-of-pocket expenditure and ultimately reducing catastrophic health expenditure. When adopted, the bill will free up resources to be used for service delivery, contributing to domestic resource mobilization for health, and increasing access to essential health services. The bill now moves to the National Assembly for discussion and full adoption by September 2016.
