This archive report was first published on 16 October 2019.
As of June 2018, thousands of Kenyans using National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) cards were unable to access their health insurance services due to a system error that had left their details unreflected in the system.
According to NHIF acting Chief Executive Officer Nicodemus Odongo, the highest number of contributors who used Safaricom M-Pesa services to pay for their cover had used the wrong details, resulting in their money not being reflected in the system.
While appearing before a parliamentary committee, Mr. Odongo revealed that 70,000 suspected Kenyans were affected by the anomaly, although he did not confirm the number. He stated, “I don’t know the number of people affected, because members pay different amounts while others chose to pay their contribution for the whole year. We will be able to provide the information in two days.”
Members of the National Assembly Public Investment Committee accused NHIF of neglecting the concerns of suffering Kenyans by failing to put up measures to protect them against such errors.
“Sh35 million in one single year is not a small amount and NHIF is putting the lives of poor Kenyans in jeopardy as they cannot access health services using their cards due to mistakes made by the company,” Wajir East MP Rashid Amin said.
