Uproar has greeted proposals by the National Hospital Insurance Fund to deduct higher contributions from employees.
The move is radical and against standard practices, said Federation of Kenya Employers executive director Jacqueline Mugo.
“As the custodians of employers in the country, we were never consulted. We have an issue with the draft,” Ms Mugo said, adding: “(NHIF is) a law unto themselves. This is uncalled for.”
The changes are meant to boost Universal Health Coverage (UHC), but for the changes to work, Ms Mugo said NHIF needs to step back and examine whether this is the right direction to take.
Employers have previously opposed proposals to match workers’ contributions, warning that higher rates would push up their wage bills and weaken the capacity of businesses to create new jobs and sustain existing ones.
The Ministry of Health and NHIF have fronted this in draft regulations published on February 16 as part of reforms to help achieve UHC.
Medical practitioners in the private sector yesterday said the national insurer should not be coercive when asking people to remit their contributions.
“We are happy to work with NHIF, but the challenge is on the enforcement of the new regulations… all Kenyans should have a form of insurance, but they should do it voluntarily,” said Dr Abdi Mohammed, chairperson of the Kenya Association of Private Hospitals (KAPH).
Dr Timothy Olweny, KAPH secretary-general, said the future of healthcare should be tied to a pre-financing option as opposed to paying on service delivery.
In the draft proposals, employees earning more than Sh100,000 per month will pay more in monthly contributions to NHIF, signalling a deeper financial strain on them and their employers if Parliament approves the new rates.
The fresh regulations will see workers earning more than Sh100,000 pay 1.7 per cent of their gross salary to the insurer.
Under the current model, employees earning over Sh100,000 pay a fixed monthly contribution of Sh1,700. Workers earning Sh200,000 will pay double at Sh3,400, while the burden of those who make Sh500,000 will increase five times to Sh8,500.
Employers who do not provide a superior private insurance cover will be expected to match the workers’ monthly contributions to NHIF, a further hit on firms that are yet to recover from the coronavirus-induced slump that triggered job cuts, hiring freezes and business closures.
Kenyans used to pay a flat rate of Sh200 monthly, which was increased to a maximum of Sh1,700 for all employees in the formal sector and Sh500 for those in the informal sector.
“This is going to be a bitter pill to swallow for many Kenyans. Something is not right and we must make noise about it,” Mr Gibson Tum, who would be affected by the new rates, said.
According to the draft, adults must show proof of an NHIF cover before being served in government facilities or risk a fine of Sh20,000.
But the draft law is silent on whether NHIF will enhance its benefits. Dr John Ngigi, a consultant physician and kidney specialist who is also the president of the Kenya Renal Association, said NHIF should also improve services as they take more money from Kenyans.
Recently, NHIF reduced reimbursements to hospitals for dialysis from Sh9,500 to Sh6,500 and this, Dr Ngigi said, will see many patients drop out of treatment and many treatment units close down.
“Are they going to increase the sessions, increase the reimbursement to hospitals? We are also employees and we are deducted money. We need good services,” he said. BY DAILY NATION