The Coastal region chapter of medical practitioners and dental unions has opposed the new Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) system say it has numerous flaws.
The practitioners drawn from 6 counties largely composed of Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists' Union (KMPDU) members issued the statement in their third annual general meeting where they gather to discuss various issues affecting them.
According to them, SHIF dos not adequately cater for various needs of Kenyans. As a result, the new system has forced many Kenyans from various parts of the country to pay put of the pocket despite being registered and being paid-up members of Social Health Authority (SHA).
This comes days after Health PS warned against demanding cash payments from patients registered under SHA. Nonetheless, Kenyans have to dig into their pockets to receive treatment that is not covered under SHIF.
Doctors from the Coast region are now the latest to join Kenyans from across the country in expressing anger and frustration over the new SHIF system despite the government's calls to have Kenyans enroll to the new SHIF system.
According to the doctors, the new system that the government has been promoting is ineffective and deeply flawed as it has left many patients stranded both in hospital and outside.
“Most of all the doctors in this hospital in Kenya are rejecting SHIF. The people who normally have dialysis can only have dialysis once a month or two when they are supposed to have 5 cycles or sometimes 6 cycles. So the other 4 or 5 cycles they have to check out of their pockets,” Secretary of KMPDU Coast Ghalib Salim Ali explained.
At the same time, the Ministry of Health maintains its goal is to enroll all Kenyans into the system by end of December, but the doctors have raised concerns over the implementation of the scheme that has 13 million Kenyans registered so far.
“Cancer patients who go for chemotherapy have only been authorized only one chemo. So, we can see this is just a scam. Whatever we are doing is scam,” Ghalib Salim Ali added warning that the country is headed in the wrong trajectory.
On his part, chairperson of KMPDU Coast lamented that medics too are having it rough.
“We are having comprehensive medicare that used to be there for the employees from the Ministry of Health but right now its barely functional. There are some places you will have outpatient, but we have issue of inpatients. There is no pre authorization so right now if you are sick, you will technically pay out of pocket,” he stated
