Imagine walking into a health facility, getting diagnosed and receiving all the drugs the doctor prescribed from the hospital’s pharmacy, after parting with Sh3 a day.
Kitui residents will be able to access free treatment in all public hospitals in the county and all referral hospitals in the country under an insurance cover plan to be launched Tuesday.
The cover dubbed Kitui County Health Insurance Cover (K-CHIC) will be launched at Katulani trading centre in Kitui Central sub-county.
The aim of the insurance cover is to provide quality and affordable healthcare to all residents so as to cushion them against out-of-pocket expenses when sick.
Every household will be required to pay an annual fee of Sh1,000 to benefit from this ambitious insurance cover.
After her landslide victory in last year’s election, in which she floored former county boss Julius Malombe, Governor Charity Ngilu is on a mission.
Ngilu, 66, was Minister for Health for five years, from 2003 to 2008.
An experienced politician with the ability to blend politics with servant leadership, Ngilu is one of the few governors gearing up to launch universal healthcare programmes in their counties.
The Chief Officer, Ministry of Health and Sanitation Richard Muthoka says residents will just need to walk with their cards in all 14 Level Four hospitals and get treatment without paying any penny if one is enrolled for the K-CHIC.
Last week, Kitui County Assembly formulated the Kitui County Health Regulations to see the plan succeed.
With a population of roughly 1.3 million residents, the citizens living in the county will be able to access quality and affordable healthcare which will be offered through the Universal Health Care Fund managed by the county.
Universal Health Care is one of the pillars of President Uhuru Kenyatta Big Four Agenda plan and Governor Charity Ngilu’s plan will not only support the pillar but the poverty-ravaged county.
Under this model, the county government will guarantee and provide a set of essential curative, promotive and rehabilitative health services at all levels of care in public health facilities free of charge at the point of care to all registered members.
According to the County Health Accounts (CHA) report, in 2015-16 some 34.2 per cent of Kitui households paid for health services out of their own pockets.
Insurance coverage is low, at less than 15 per cent, while 63 per cent of the population live below the poverty line.