At least 100,000 Nairobi County government employees are staring at the possibility of not accessing health services as uncertainty persists over their medical insurance cover.
Treasury Cabinet Secretary Ukur Yatani last month instructed the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) to only continue offering comprehensive medical cover to civil servants, police and prisons service.
Kenya County Government Workers Union (KCGWU) Secretary General Roba Duba has now condemned the directive by the CS, saying it risks leaving 103,000 county employees and their families without health insurance benefits.
Through a protest letter to Mr Yatani, Mr Duba said the directive had led to confusion over the renewal of their comprehensive medical insurance cover, noting that lack of clarity over the renewal of the covers now threatens to leave the county employees and their families seriously exposed and at risk.
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“The purpose of this letter is to implore your office to advise NHIF that county governments and their related agencies are covered in the exemption advisory from your office to enable employees get covered in realisation of provision of Universal Health Coverage,” stated the letter dated April 23, 2020.
Duba observed that the Employment Act, 2007 provided that it was the role of an employer to provide affordable, accessible, sustainable and quality medical cover.
