President William Ruto on Thursday, October 19 signed four Universal Health Coverage(UHC) bills into law at an event in State House.
The bills include the Social Health Insurance Bill, the Primary Health Care Bill, the Facility Improvement Financing Bill, and the Digital Health Bill.
The Social Health Bill abolishes the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) and creates three new funds namely; Primary Health Care Fund, Social Health Insurance Fund, and Chronic Illness and Emergency Fund. The bill is set to replace the current National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) Act and usher in a paradigm shift in the legal and institutional framework for healthcare in Kenya.
The Primary Health Care Bill provides a framework for the management of healthcare networks and create a system for Community Health Promoters. It also creates a means through which the National Government can avail more resources to County Governments for Primary Health Care.
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The Facility Improvement Bill on the other hand will provide an accountable mechanism for the collection and management of funds raised from public health facilities while the Digital Health Bill seeks to create a platform to integrate health data to ensure the efficient provision of health and care.
Speaking after signing the Bills into law President Ruto said the laws will transform Kenya’s healthcare save lives and make a healthier nation.
“Today we have made a significant step towards making healthcare universal for all Kenyans, I thank and commend the people of Kenya for actively shaping these laws through various public engagement platforms… These laws will transform healthcare in Kenya, save lives, empower communities and make us a stronger and healthier nation,” said Ruto.
Ruto also observed that the Digital Health Act will streamline the adoption of technology in the health sector, enabling improved data sharing and resource utilization.
"This law will address the existing legal and regulatory gaps in the framework for the eHealth ecosystem and its data lifecycle, enabling the development of standards for the provision of mobile health, telemedicine, and e-learning in healthcare," he added.
The signing of the bills comes ahead of the UHC launch during the Mashujaa Day Celebrations in Kericho County on Friday.
