Health Cabinet Secretary Deborah Barasa has urged the public to participate in the validation of the new Social Health Insurance benefits package. The validation session is scheduled for Friday, August 30, at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre.
“Having undertaken public participation and stakeholder engagement and incorporated feedback from the Public and Stakeholders, the Cabinet Secretary and the Board of the Social Health Authority shall hold a National Validation Exercise on the Tariffs to the Benefit Package,” a notice by Barasa reads.
“We therefore invite all stakeholders and members of the public to participate in the National Validation exercise, scheduled for Friday, August 30, 2024, at KICC, as from 9 am.”
The new benefits package was developed by the Health Cabinet Secretary in collaboration with the Social Health Authority Board. Enacted on October 19, 2023, the Social Health Insurance Act No. 16 of 2023 is set to replace the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF). The government began mass registration for the Social Health Insurance Fund on July 1, 2024.
As of August 14, Chairman of the Social Health Authority Timothy Olweny reported that over 500,000 Kenyans had registered for the Fund. Olweny stated that the new Act will address the shortcomings of NHIF and offer additional services that were not previously covered.
“We will be better than NHIF. The transition is going to be very smooth,” he said
Preparations are in full gear to have the programme working, Olweny said. This is despite the court cases that have dragged the process.
He said Kenyans should expect the Social Health Insurance Fund to be fully operational by October 1.
