NHIF bets on saccos to shore up numbers

Transport saccos and farmers’ cooperative societies are the new targets of the National Hospital Insurance Fund as it seeks to shore up numbers.

The new strategy is informed by the custom-made products on offer for the informal sector.

According to the latest numbers by NHIF, the informal sector, which belongs to the micro-insurance category that pays Sh500 a month, has shown potential for growth compared to the public and private sectors.

As at June 2018, subscription to the NHIF in the micro-insurance category stood at 2.92 million - an increase of over 308,000 subscribers.

This is compared to the private sector’s three million subscribers, who grew by 101,056.

“The diversification of products is expected to appeal to individuals in the population with particular health requirements,” said NHIF Chief Executive Geoffrey Mwangi.

“The informal sector is urged to organise itself into associations such as taxi, farmer cooperatives, and business saccos and register as a group.”

The State insurer is targeting 19 million principal subscribers by 2022 from the current 7.6 million.

This is in anticipation of the rollout of the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) plan, whose pilot programme will start running in four counties starting this month.

Set aside

The UHC will be tested in Kisumu, Isiolo, Nyeri, and Machakos. The State has set aside Sh44.6 billion for the programme.

Other NHIF customised products include the Sh4 billion cover for the three million secondary school going children and Linda Mama that seeks to rope in uninsured expectant women.

NHIF unaudited revenue stood at Sh47 billion as of June 2018 compared to Sh37 billion in the last financial year.