Kenya: High Court suspends implementation of Social Health Insurance Act
Putting a halt to the government's plans, Kenya's High Court suspended the planned implementation of the Social Health Insurance Act 2023 by the Ministry of Health until February 2024.In a brief ruling rendered by Justice Chacha Mwita on Monday, November 27, 2023,...
Gender blindness in social health protection could deter Africa’s progress towards universal health coverage
Recap: Martina Mchenga, PhD post-doctoral fellow at the Centre for Social Science Research, University of Cape Town, South Africa. In recent years social protection has gained increased recognition as a powerful tool for poverty alleviation and vulnerability...
Kenya: President signs four new healthcare bills into law
On 17 October, Kenya's President, William Ruto signed the four healthcare bills, Social Health Insurance Bill, Primary Health Care Bill, Facility Improvement Financing Bill, and Digital Health Bill into law after they were passed by the Parliament recently.The Social...
Webinar | Kenya’s social health insurance bill: What, why and how?
3 October 2023 | 4-5:30 PM-EAT (9-10:30 AM-ET) ThinkWell's latest Counterpoint webinar titled “Kenya’s new Social Health Insurance Bill: What, why, and how?” will offer a deep look into the purpose of the bill, its key features, and how it will be incorporated into...
Kenya leads in sustainable healthcare financing at the national health financing dialogue
Kenya's recent national health financing dialogue which followed the Africa Leadership Meeting (ALM) declaration of 2019, showcased the country's leadership in sustainable healthcare financing in Africa. With a strong commitment from the government and key...
Event: National high level dialogue on health financing
The countdown to the high-level dialogue on health financing for universal health coverage (UHC) in Kenya has begun! Join us as we pave the way towards sustainable health financing and UHC. Mark your calendars for June 26th-28th June 2023. The meeting will bring...
The National Health Insurance Fund in Kenya refine strategy to extend coverage to informal workers
The National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) staff attended a week long management retreat (20-24 March) organised by the Social Protection and Public Finance Management Program to discuss the NHIF institutional strategy with a focus on extending coverage to informal...
NHIF contributions for low income earners in Kenya to drop by 40% starting July, 2023
The government of Kenya announces a reduction in monthly NHIF contribution for low-income earners by 40% and establishes a volunteer program to enhance healthcare access for marginalised communities. President William Ruto announced changes to the National Health...
HFS process update -/05/2016
[Source: giz] Please find below a summary and update of the Health Financing Strategy development process in Kenya including some milestones since 2012: • A review of the draft HFS was conducted with support from the Partners for Health consortium (P4H) in...
Nairobi county to expand health insurance coverage to over 200,000 vulnerable households in partnership with NHIF
The Nairobi county plans to launch a health insurance scheme for underprivileged households in the city, starting with 232,000 households. This initiative aims to provide access to healthcare for vulnerable residents and will be implemented in partnerships with the...
National Health Insurance Fund reassures Kenyans that Linda Mama Program is ongoing
Over 6 million Kenyan mothers have benefitted since 2017 Linda Mama Program launch The National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) has assured Kenyans that the government-funded Linda Mama program whose aim is to reduce maternal and child mortality and alleviate the...
Kenya Health Cabinet Secretary inaugurates National Health Insurance Fund’s board of directors
Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe says the Kenyan government is committed to expanding health service coverage with a focus on quality as well as reduction of healthcare costs. Speaking in Malindi while inaugurating board of directors of the, National Health...
Kenya expands medical coverage, requires employer contributions
Kenya’s National Health Insurance Fund (NIHF) Amendment Act, which took effect on 22 January, 2022 expands healthcare coverage and requires employers to pay matching NHIF contributions for their employees, unless they offer equal or better private medical coverage....
Amended law will speed up healthcare reforms in Kenya
As part of the President Uhuru Kenyatta’s Big Four agenda, the Kenyan government put in place several strategies to facilitate the realisation of Universal Health Coverage (UHC). One of the strategies chosen was the introduction of the National Health Insurance Fund...
It takes two to tango: enabling public facilities to participate in purchasing arrangements in Kenya
Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) across the world are embracing purchasing reforms that, at their core, involve payers reimbursing providers based on outputs. Some have adopted free care policies wherein facilities are compensated for user fees forgone. Others...