PROCESSES to introduce the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) have reached an advanced stage and it is expected to be operational by July this year, a cabinet minister has said.
Speaking in Harare on Thursday, Health and Child Care minister Douglas Mombeshora said the government was on the verge of launching the scheme.
“Quite a lot of work has been done and I can assure you by July this year we should have it because everything is now in place, the paperwork has been done. We are going to be presenting it in Parliament any time soon,” he said.
The NHIS, which was mooted 20 years ago, is aimed at ensuring that every Zimbabwean has access to quality health services at any public clinic or hospital in the country.
Disagreements over who should run it between the ministries of Health and Child Care, Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion as well as Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare, which already has the National Social Security Authority (NSSA), have delayed implementation of the much-touted medical scheme.
In fact, when the idea of the NHIS was fi rst mooted, it was supposed to be administered by NSSA on the grounds that it had the requisite experience of managing a similar scheme, but the scandals that were rocking the authority at the time cast aspersions over its capability.
There were also concerns in some quarters that the scheme would stretch the already burdened tax payers, who are struggling to make ends meet in inflationary environment which is eroding salaries and wages.
Like NSSA which was established through an Act of Parliament in 1989, every Zimbabwean in formal employment would be compelled to contribute to the National Health Insurance Fund, which will be used to finance the public health system in the country, including purchasing essential drugs and equipment as well as building requisite infrastructure.
Existing medical aid societies would complement the NHIS by providing cover to those who can afford it. To ensure universal access to health, the ministry of Health and Child Care also developed the national health strategy which outlines the roadmap towards turning around and restoring stability in the health delivery system.
The strategy speaks to 10 strategic focus areas in line with NDS1 to address gaps within the health system. Some of the strategic focus areas include increasing domestic funding for health to meet the provisions of the Abuja Declaration, which state that 15 percent of the national budget should be allocated to the health sector. — New Ziana