Pain for salaried workers as SHIF contribution take effect in March

The Ministry of Health is set to gazette the social health insurance regulations on Friday, setting the stage for the implementation of the health coverage. 

Health Cabinet Secretary Wafula Nakhumicha's pronouncement goes against the reprieve she gave Kenyans last week,  during the national validation exercise for the SHIF regulations, which has set the deduction start date in July.

“Our aim as a ministry is to begin registration by March. I think I can move the target from 1st for everyone to breathe…from our regulations from the act, this will go on until June, and thereafter we intend to begin payments/contributions at the rate of 2.75% with a minimum of Ksh.300 and our hope is that access to this benefits will begin from 1st of July,” she noted.

The about-turn by the ministry comes on the eve of the gazettement of the regulations that will operationalize the Social Health Insurance Act that will anchor the provision of Universal Health Care to Kenyans.

The pronouncement on the now revised commencement date for the deductions comes amidst a cloud of uncertainty over just how the deductions will be undertaken in the absence of an established system.

The old order of the NHIF was rendered defunct with the passage of the SHI Act. The new system is yet to be set up with fresh registration of members to the scheme set to kick off after the gazettement of the regulations, a fact that even the author of the two different dates concurs.

“Our projection is that we need three months to march to prepare ourselves, we need digital systems to do registration we need to test it then collect resources, and by the next financial year, Kenyans can begin to enjoy the services,” she added.

Social health insurance will replace the repealed NHIF that had been riddled with claims of fraud and mismanagement, with fresh revelations emerging about deep-seated malpractices that cost the taxpayer hundreds of millions of shillings.

Under the soon-to-be gazetted regulations, salaried Kenyans will pay 2.75% of their gross salaries to the SHIF while the least amount payable will be Ksh.300. 

These deductions will accord Kenyans access to health care and medical services from the basic health care unit to the referrals and in special cases, specialized medical care outside the country.