Economy

Sossion protests NHIF board ouster bid

sossion

Mr Wilson Sossion, Knut Secretary-General. Photo/FILE

Protests have greeted government plans to axe teachers, insurers and doctors’ representatives from the board of the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) in a battle to control the agency.

Parliament Majority Leader Aden Duale has made fresh amendments to the NHIF Act that will reduce the size of the fund’s board to seven from the current 13.

The changes will see the Association of Kenya Insurers (AKI), the Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut), Kenya National Farmers Union (KNFU), Kenya Medical Association, Christian Health Association of Kenya (CHAK) and National Council of NGOs lose their automatic seats on the board.

Those affected include Knut’s Secretary-General Wilson Sossion, Tom Gichuhi (the chief executive of AKI), Elijah Onyango (KNFU), Catherine Muriithi (National Council of NGOs) and CHAK’s Rev Michael Sande.

This will earn the government majority voting rights in NHIF board, given it will have five directors including two principal secretaries and the director of medical services  as well as the fund’s CEO and chairman.

The CEO of the fund is appointed by the Cabinet secretary in charge of health while the chair is a Presidential appointee.

On Monday, the National Council of NGOs and KNUT protested the move, and asked MPs to stop the amendments on the floor of the House.

“Teachers in this country contribute Sh7 billon per year in the NHIF and we will not accept to give money to an institution where we are not represented,” said Mr Sossion at a Press conference.

The council’s chairman, Mr Wilson Kipkazi, warned that the removal of NGOs was ill-advised, adding that the non-governmental organisations are charged with keeping the State in check and ensuring good governance.

Mr Duale, who has brought the amendments on behalf of the government, also wants the chief executive of NHIF appointed by the board and not the Cabinet secretary in charge of health.

“There shall be a chief executive officer of the board who shall be recruited competitively by the board on such terms and conditions,” says Mr Duale in the Statute Law Miscellaneous (Amendments) Bill 2014.

The State has in the past been unable to push its agenda on the board of NHIF, notably the need for high monthly contributions and control of the fund’s executive team, mainly due its minority voting rights of four against 13.

If the Duale amendments are adopted by the House, it will give the government full control of the NHIF board.

The Fund last year received Sh12 billion from its nearly four million contributors and paid out Sh8.2 billion to hospitals to settle members bills.