Budget Committee Pushes for NHIF Coverage of Assistive Devices
In new reforms, the National Assembly Budget Committee wants the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) to pay for assistive devices like wheelchairs for its patients.
In a report issued on Friday, the Committee recommended that the new protection be included in the NHIF Amendment Bill proposed by Nyandarua Woman Representative Faith Gitau.
If the new legislative proposals are approved, only major contributors will benefit from the modifications.
Common assistive devices used by patients include hearing aids, autism connect, and assistive limbs, among others.
“Furthermore, the Budget Committee recommended that the National Health Insurance Fund cover the costs of assistive devices for contributors exclusively.
“This decision avoids amending the principal NHIF Act to shift the responsibility for these costs to the national government,” read the report in part.
The new proposal may be cost-effective for patients who occasionally must purchase devices costing hundreds of thousands of dollars.
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For example, a standard wheelchair costs approximately Ksh20,000, whereas more advanced wheelchairs cost Ksh100,000 or more.
In contrast, a quality hearing aid costs over Ksh6,000.
In addition, the MPs approved the NHIF Amendment Bill 2023, which seeks to increase penalties for insurance companies that have been occasionally accused of price gouging.
Among the offenses targeted by the bill are the failure to pay claims by patients and the theft of an insurer’s property.
“A person who commits an offense under this section shall be liable on conviction on a first offense- in the case of an individual, to a fine not exceeding Ksh 5 million or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years.
“In the case of a company, to a fine not exceeding Ksh10 million,” read the bill in part.
The amendments are in response to proposals to divide the fund primarily into three parts: the Primary Healthcare Fund, the Social Health Insurance Fund, and the Emergency, Chronic, and Critical Illness Fund, to better address the diverse illnesses that affect Kenyans.
Unknown are the specifics of the new monthly deductions for the three Funds.
Budget Committee Pushes for NHIF Coverage of Assistive Devices