Wetang'ula says health reforms have curbed corruption, reshaped care financing

National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang'ula. [Elvis Ogina, Standard]

The reform journey initiated by the Kenya Kwanza administration has begun addressing corruption and access to quality care, the National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula has said.

Speaking at the Health Summit held at KICC, Wetang'ula said the reforms were responding to the experiences of desperate families who are often forced to raise money at night to meet hospital bills, negotiate the release of patients or stand at hospital gates seeking help to pay for treatment.

He said Parliament understood the need for reforms and had played a key role in creating the legal framework to transform healthcare financing and delivery.

According to the Speaker, the National Assembly Departmental Committee on Health had recommended on June 8, 2022, that the Facility Improvement Financing (FIF) mechanism be established.

He said the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF), which was established in 1966, had been overtaken by changes in the economy and the evolving social needs of Kenyans.

“When the reforms came, they found a ready legislative framework. Parliament had made attempts to achieve what had been stalled,” said the speaker.

He said Parliament passed four key health laws in 2023, describing them as a major turning point for the health sector.

The Primary Health Care Act established the legal framework for the delivery and management of primary healthcare and formally provided for Community Health Promoters (CHPs), he said.

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The Facility Improvement Financing Act allows public health facilities to retain money they generate and use it to improve services at the facility level.

“This money is now spent at a dispensary,” added Wetang'ula.

The Digital Health Act, he said, addressed unfinished obligations in the digital health space, established the Digital Health Agency and provided protections for personal health data.

The Social Health Insurance Act, which established the legal framework for the Social Health Authority (SHA), created three funds — the Primary Healthcare Fund, the Social Health Insurance Fund and the Emergency, Chronic and Critical Illness Fund.

Further, Wetang'ula said the four laws had been subjected to robust public debate before their passage, with some facing resistance from those seeking to maintain the status quo.

“The majority were ready, and saw them as Damascus moments for the health sector,” he said.

He said Parliament’s constitutional responsibility was to appropriate and oversee public resources to ensure Kenyans received value for money.

“Parliament shall ensure any person accounts for money,” he said.

Wetang’ula said the law also provides for healthcare services that should not require direct payment by patients, including primary healthcare and emergency care, which are financed through parliamentary appropriations.

He said Parliament would continue pushing for rationalisation of health services so that Kenyans in both urban and rural areas could access quality care, including specialist services.

The Speaker called for greater emphasis on preventive and promotive healthcare, including regular health check-ups, physical fitness and immunisation.

He said technology was also being deployed to detect fraudulent claims and other abuses within the health system.

“Cases of fraud must be checked and those found, action taken. Now we have an AI fraud engine dealing with this,” he said.

Wetang’ula said Kenyans should not be subjected to additional charges for services they had already contributed towards through the health insurance system.

“Where a citizen is contributing for care, no more charges should be put on citizens,” he said.

He said Parliament would continue appropriating funds for healthcare and ensuring that the money allocated was used for its intended purpose.

“Parliament will appropriate funds and ensure appropriated funds are put to proper use. We remain ready to support government reforms to give meaning to health and benefit our country,” he said.