The Senate Health Committee is set to launch an inquiry into the allegations that the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) is being defrauded by certain healthcare providers.
This follows an outcry from the public that the health facilities are colluding with NHIF personnel to overcharge patients who have insurance coverage through the organization. In response to this, Health Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha has requested a thorough lifestyle audit of NHIF staff to ensure honesty and responsibility.
Nominated Senator Esther Okenyuri has asked the Senate Health Committee, headed by Uasin Gishu Senator Jackson Mandago, to investigate the allegations of conniving between NHIF staff and the directors of such facilities. In a petition presented in the Senate, Senator Okenyuri requests the committee to provide an outline of the measures to be taken to recuperate the public money lost in the collusion between the Fund’s personnel and the directors of health services. Okenyuri also wants the committee to provide the number of health facilities accredited by NHIF in the past eight years (2014-2023), broken down by year and county.
The petition comes after Health CS called for an investigation into the shady medical camps that are alleged to have stolen millions from elderly patients. The CS has since requested the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Council (KMPDC) and the Pharmacy and Poisons Board to look into the issue and provide a report within 48 hours. The facilities under investigation include Jekim Medical Centre in Meru, St Peter’s Orthopaedic and Surgical Hospital in Kiambu, Afya Bora Hospital in Kirinyaga, Joy Nursing and Maternity Hospital in Nairobi, Afya Bora Hospital Annex in Kirinyaga, Jekim Hospital in Meru, Berut Pharmacy and Medical Centre and Amal Hospital Limited.
