The four counties in the pilot project of the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) will get Sh3.9 billion to equip primary healthcare facilities once they have enlisted residents under National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) cover.
Kisumu Health Executive Rosemary Obara said the money from the National Treasury will go towards preventing diseases at the community level and equipping health facilities.
She announced this during the launch of the county’smass enlistment drive presided over by Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o yesterday.
The government has set aside Sh44.6 billion for the pilot phase of UHC for the financial year 2018/19, covering Kisumu, Isiolo, Nyeri and Machakos counties.
UHC scheme seeks to make healthcare affordable for all citizens by 2022. The country is riding on the principal of resource pooling under NHIF to offer cheaper health services.
NHIF officials explained that at Sh6000 per year (or Sh500 per month), each adult will be covered for medical services up to the sub-county hospital level, which will be revamped to offer an array of services such as X-Ray and minor surgeries.
Kisumu County launched a household registration drive following a successful enlistment pilot in Seme, in which 92 per cent of the sub-county’s target population of 3,530 were registered.
The county has partnered with PharmAcess to digitise the process which will make it easier for patients to access services in the referral system.
Residents will use PharmAcess’ mobile banking service M-Tiba to save as little as Sh20 a day to reach the Sh500 contribution target.