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{
    "id": 1095105,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1095105/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 221,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Nominated, ODM",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. (Ms.) Dennitah Ghati",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13171,
        "legal_name": "wilson sossion",
        "slug": "wilson-sossion"
    },
    "content": "has a right to the highest attainable standards of healthcare. It is wonderful that we want to make healthcare accessible and affordable in this country. The NHIF and the whole issue of healthcare in this country is not very well understood, especially in the rural settlements where we come from. As a body corporate, the NHIF must make it mandatory or its responsibility to educate Kenyans about the whole issue of healthcare. So many people in the rural areas are not aware of the existence of the NHIF and what it does. Even the few people who know, especially where I come from, accessibility is a problem. Healthcare in this country is expensive. I am happy because this Bill is seeking to make sure that healthcare can be accessed. It is seeking to enhance coverage so that as many Kenyans as possible can access healthcare. A majority of the people who access healthcare in this country are people like us, Members of Parliament, who are in formal employment. Look at the poor vulnerable elderly people and persons with disabilities (PWDs). In fact, this Bill should be talking about making healthcare free for PWDs. If you look at the elderly, PWDs and their access to healthcare, we cannot just be talking about healthcare in terms of going into a hospital, getting your drugs by getting into a pharmacy and going home. Accessibility of healthcare by PWDs is wanting in this country. I am glad because this Bill is seeking to look at vulnerable persons. I represent vulnerable persons especially PWDs. This Bill talks about PWDs, including those who require special care, support and protection. It is a good Bill. However, we need to expand it. This Bill must explain what it means by “healthcare for PWDs” in this country. A person with disability does not only go there for drugs. This Bill must look at PWDs in terms of assistive devices as well. I do not know whether the Members in this House understand what it means to access healthcare as PWDs in this country. It is expensive. It is just not about drugs, but also things like wheelchairs, white canes and diapers for some categories of PWDs. Everything that PWDs need must be in this Bill to make sure that when we talk about healthcare for PWDs, it is not just about giving them Malaraqueen and Panadol tablets. It is about what makes it possible for PWDs to function like other human beings. Most of the assistive devices in this country must be classified in terms of things like drugs. If you say that a PWD who go to hospital cannot access a wheelchair, diapers or catheter, the NHIF must pronounce itself clearly on what they mean by “healthcare for PWDs” in this country. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, may be you do not have a person who lives with disabilities in your homestead, but you must understand what it is. We cannot just say “healthcare for vulnerable persons, including PWDs.” Members of Parliament who have PWDs in their constituencies must make it easier for everyone to understand what it is that a person with disability needs when it comes to healthcare. We cannot just be clamping things as we say “vulnerable people, including PWDs.” As a body corporate, the NHIF must do more to create awareness and ensure that the vulnerable people they have referred to in this Bill, including those with disabilities, are adequately covered. The coverage must be expanded. During this period of the COVID-19 Pandemic, we have witnessed the vulnerabilities that we have as a country, especially in the rural areas. Our people cannot access anything. If this Bill is as genuine as it purports, it must not be talking about putting everybody together in terms of making compulsory contributions to the NHIF. What about jobless university graduates and other jobless people who require healthcare? There are people who do not have employment the way we have. The State seeks to make the NHIF membership compulsory by ensuring that every Kenyan above the age of 18 years contributes Kshs500 to become a member. What about the people who do not have that money including PWDs and the elderly? The NHIF must pronounce itself on this The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}