Kenyans to Pay More for Linda Mama Under SHIF

Maternal healthcare will be more expensive under the new Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) as families will have to pay Ksh5,000 more on standard deliveries and Ksh16,700 more on Caesarean Sections (c-section).

From October 1, the Linda Mama Program, which has been a vital program for maternal healthcare in Kenya, will be transferred to SHIF with major changes set to take place.

A number of significant changes suggested under SHIF include:

1. Standard Delivery Costs: Standard delivery costs for normal deliveries will be Ksh10,000 up from Ksh5,000.
2. Caesarean Sections: A C-section will cost Ksh34,200 with a three-day maximum hospital stay included up from Ksh17,500 which signifies a huge increase.
3. Universal Access: Whether a mother chooses a public or private facility, the cost will be standardised at Ksh10,000 for normal deliveries and Ksh30,000 for higher-tier facilities.

In an interview on Wednesday, August 28, the Director General of Health Dr. Patrick Amoth emphasised that SHIF's goal is to provide universal access to high-quality maternal care. For those who cannot afford the costs due to financial difficulties, the government will apply a proxy means test to cover the difference, making sure that everyone gets the care they need.

“If you are not able to contribute because you are indigent or you are vulnerable or marginalised, then through the proxy means testing, we are able to identify how much money you generate, the deficit or the difference will be paid for by the government. To ensure that you are not disenfranchised from receiving healthcare services,” stated Amoth in a statement.

Read more: This Smartphone Comes with Free Health Insurance

Linda Mama which was launched in 2013 was designed to address the high rates of maternal mortality that were linked to poverty by providing mothers with free maternity services in public and private health facilities.

The government's recent decision to replace NHIF with SHIF which is under the Social Health Insurance Act (SHIA) has sparked concerns among Kenyans.

A recent court ruling by the High Court of Kenya declared SHIA 2023 and its related acts unconstitutional and therefore null and void for violating various provisions of the constitution.However, the judges suspended their ruling on SHIF and gave the parliament 120 days to make amends to the act. 

"This should be done within 120 days. If they fail to, the Act shall remain suspended," they said.

Govt Has Spent Ksh47 Billion on Fuel Subsidies

The Treasury has revealed that Kenya used Ksh22 billion more on fuel subsidies between April and June despite the State House publicly stating that the policy on subsidies had been reversed. 

Read also: Revealed: Kenya's Ksh131 Billion IMF Loan Was Cancelled After Finance Bill Fall‍‍

Albert Mwenda, the director-general for Budget, Fiscal and Economic affairs at the Treasury in a statement said that Kenya used Ksh47.26 billion on fuel subsidies which is Ksh25 billion more than what is allocated in the Petroleum Development Levy (PDL) and that a huge chunk of the money came from taxes.

“The subsidies(Ksh47.26 billion) relate to petroleum products and were used to stabilise prices of fuel when there were sharp increases in prices due to movement in global fuel prices. A portion of it came from the exchequer(taxes)”, said Director General Albert.

The PDL subsidy scheme funds, which is given to oil marketing companies(OMCs) as compensation when oil prices breach a threshold set by the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority(EPRA), was set at Ksh24.88. The government used Ksh22.39 billion more for the same cause.

The PDL fund draws its cash deduction at the pump at a rate of Ksh5.40 per litre of petrol and diesel and Ksh0.40 from kerosene from each litre of kerosene.

“Ideally, fuel price stabilisation should be funded from the Petroleum Development Levy(PDL) and not from exchequer resources,” said Albert.

This is despite President William Ruto’s move to remove fuel and maize floor subsidies put in place by the former administration  saying he preferred subsidies of production rather than consumption.

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