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{
    "id": 1443545,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1443545/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 134,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Gataya Mo Fire",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "salaried people to enable them to pay the annual contributions within intervals under which their income becomes available. Given that premium financing is a loan, the Ministry could not clarify how this is implementable for people who are not salaried. The Authority had not conducted nationwide registration of contributors and beneficiaries. Regulation 31 of the Social Health Insurance (General) Regulations, which provides that the accreditation of healthcare providers under the Act shall be done by a body responsible for accreditation to be established under the Act, contradicts Section 33 of the Act by providing that the empanelment and accreditation of healthcare providers under the Act shall be done by the Social Health Authority. The body has not been established, rendering the procedure of empanelment and accreditation of healthcare providers unclear. Other anomalies pointed out during the stakeholder engagement, include the Benefits Package and Tariffs Advisory Panel established under Regulation 41(2) of the Social Health Insurance (General) Regulations ought to have been established in the Social Health Insurance Act and not subsidiary legislation. There is lack of justification for the membership of the Benefits Package and Tariffs Advisory Panel. The Ministry could not clarify the choice of the local public university to nominate the chairperson; the inclusion of development partners in a legal body to determine benefits under the Funds from Kenyan contributions, which raises the issues of sovereignty and conflict of interest between the development partners’ mother states and Kenya; the rationale of including HENNET given that not all NGOs in the health sector are registered with HENNET; as well as the rationale and choice of including a local public university instead of the Authority to constitute the joint secretariat under Regulation 43. The tariffs to determine the benefits to be enjoyed by contributors and beneficiaries were not ready and, therefore, not provided in the Regulations. There is cross-referencing in the Regulations with provisions that did not exist in the parent Act, that is, the Social Health Insurance Act, for instance, Primary Care Network, which is in the Regulations and not in the parent Act. The rationale behind the registration of minors, which in the stakeholders’ opinion was unnecessary, was that they are already dependants. The Social Health Authority, in the stakeholders’ opinion, ought to use data already captured by the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF). The regulations did not provide for verification of the doctor’s registration details. There was a need, therefore, to provide a portal for doctors to verify their details. Due to the serious nature and urgency of the Regulations, which were to enable the implementation of the Social Health Insurance Act to commence from 1st July 2024, the Committee met with the Principal Secretary, State Department for Medical Services on Wednesday, 19th June, 2024 and various issues about the Regulations were raised, particularly on the lack of detailed evidence of public participation and the unavailability of a Schedule to the Regulations with the tariffs. During the meeting, the Principal Secretary responded to some of the issues raised by the Council of Governors and the Kenya Medical Association. Notably, the Cabinet The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Director, Hansard and AudioServices, Senate."
}