The Universal Health Coverage (UHC) programme launched by President Uhuru Kenyatta last week in Kisumu is a brilliant idea but could experience a few challenges if the government does not pay attention to its implementation.
The government has now been asked to hire more doctors to support the Universal Health Coverage. According to the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union, they are in full support of the UHC but have faulted its financing aspect which they say lacks direction.
President Uhuru during the launch said that residents of Kisumu, Nyeri, Isiolo and Machakos counties will enjoy free medical services during the piloting of the programme ahead of national roll out next year. However, the Ministry of Health said that the UHC scheme will be insurance-based and not entirely free.
“The president has done a good thing by his political commitment but at the technical level, there is no direction on UHC. The president’s speech conflicts tax funding and insurance approach to the programme,” KMPDU Secretary General Ouma Oluga said.
Oluga also said that more health workers ought to be employed to drive the roll out adding that the UHC programme should be used to test viable public-private partnerships in the provision of health services.
He further said that focusing on community health volunteers will make many people flock to hospitals.
“Demand for services will go up by 50 per cent, so efforts must be made to improve the number and quality of health workers. You will need more doctors and clinical officers to deliver the services,” Oluga said.
During the launch, Uhuru directed that the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) be restructured to support the programme meaning that all publicly funded insurance pools will be collapsed into one.
Residents of the four piloting counties will use their UHC cards to access services such as emergency, child health, maternal, mental, infectious disease management, non-communicable disease management, inpatient and outpatient and community health services.
Health CS Sicily Kariuki praised the president for prioritising the achievement of UHC, saying it will lead to transformation of Kenya by 2022.
UHC is one of Uhuru’s Big Four agenda that also includes food security, manufacturing and housing.
“Universal health coverage is essential in addressing our national challenges and will go a long way in achieving the core principle of the Vision 2030 agenda,” Sicily said.