Doctors protest plan to oust them from NHIF board

Doctors have opposed proposals in a new Bill that will remove their representative from the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) board.

The Kenya Medical Association (KMA) has warned that the national health insurer will miss its “deep and broad healthcare expertise”.

The State, through the National Hospital Insurance Fund (Amendment) Bill, 2021 is seeking to remove the KMA as representative of the health service providers in the NHIF board.

The State-sponsored Bill seeks to replace KMA with the Kenya Health Professional Oversight Authority (KHPOA), a State agency domiciled under the Ministry of Health.

KMA president Were Onyino, told Senators that the proposal to reconstitute the NHIF board ignores the constitutional principles of representation, participation and good governance.

“Kenya Health Professions Oversight Authority is a regulatory body under the Ministry of Health. They represent the interests of the Ministry and not health professional associations who provide services to members. There is a big difference between a regulatory body and a professional association,” Dr Onyino said

The KMA appeared before the Senate health committee that is scrutinising the NHIF (Amendment) Bill, which sailed through the National Assembly last month.

“KMA has deep and broad healthcare expertise which will benefit NHIF, and its members will be disproportionately impacted upon by acts of commission or omission by NHIF,” Dr Onyino said in a presentation to the committee.

KMA wants section 4 of the NHIF Act amended to allow the board to pick one person nominated by the association as representative of the key service providers and the public.

The association is also proposing that the director general for health should be represented in the NHIF board to provide technical guidance.

KMA is currently representing health service providers in the NHIF board in line with the current NHIF Act, No.9 of 1998.

“KMA should be retained to ensure inclusion of key service providers stakeholders in the board,” Dr Onyino said.

Others represented in the NHIF board include the Central Organisations of Trade Unions (Cotu), the Federation of Kenya Employers (FKE) and the Council of Governors (CoG).

Others are government officials representing the Health and Treasury ministries as well as non-governmental organisations representatives, KMA chairman and a member representing NGOs involved in the provision of health care services, nominated by the Non-Governmental Organisations Council.