13,000 households to benefit from health coverage in Taita Taveta

Over 13,000 households in Taita Taveta County stand to benefit from free NHIF medical cover in a move set to expand the reach of Universal Healthcare Coverage (UHC).

Today marked the end of the registration exercise that will bring onboard over 40,000 under-served Taita Taveta residents into the NHIF medical cover, giving them readily available and free access to medical services.

The County Government has promised to set aside more funds in the next fiscal year to increase the numbers of residents accessing affordable medical and health insurance as well as improve the capacity and the infrastructure of public hospitals.

The NHIF program is in tandem with the National Government’s agenda to achieve the global Universal Healthcare Coverage (UHC) index by 2030. The UHC is one of the flagship projects and among the “Big Four” agenda declared a matter of national importance and priority by President Kenyatta in December 2018.

The top goal of UHC is to ensure that every Kenyan accesses quality and affordable medical services by 2022, with eyes set on achieving the global UHC index by 2030.

Under UHC, the National Government is currently at advanced stages of setting up and expanding Cancer Centres of Excellence (CoE) in two national hospitals as well as improving infrastructure at County referral facilities

In Taita Taveta County, Moi County Referral Hospital, Voi, has seen funds from the national kitty injected to bolster its capacity to handle chronic conditions like cancer.

The success of UHC in Kenya will not only improve the quality and affordability of medical services but also boost the country’s medical tourism in East Africa.

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