Health insurance is important. Many people cannot afford medical services without the help of it. Unfortunately, only a few Kenyans are covered, leaving millions of others vulnerable when illness strikes.
The enhanced Sh53 billion health insurance cover for teachers is, therefore, a step in the right direction. Since its introduction six years ago, the scheme has undergone changes but is still far from perfect. Many teachers have benefitted from the insurance but many others have horror tales about their experiences when they desperately needed medical attention.
That Minet Kenya Insurance Brokers Limited won the tender for the third time in a row despite protests from some quarters necessitates the insurer to be called to account. Six years is a long time to learn and fix hitches in service provision.
Teachers have been complaining about the quality of services offered by some medical providers and Minet has information about them. It ought to do a thorough audit and weed out the offensive outfits from the approved list. Owing to the huge amount of money involved, there are various entities with vested interests but the most important party should be teachers and their dependants.
In the new deal, there are some improvements, such as the scrapping of the limitation on the number of outpatient visits. Teachers can now also get treated from more health facilities and not be restricted to a few like during the scheme’s infancy.
It is only right that teachers get value for their money for them to offer their critical services to the nation. However, there exists niggling issues—like how teachers and their dependants should be identified. During the Information Age, such an issue should be the last of complaints after six years.
Lastly, the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) should ensure that the insurer sticks to the terms of engagement for the benefit of all teachers.
