The Kenyan Government mandated that every Kenyan aged 25 years old to be subjected to a mandatory deduction towards the Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF).
This is according to the the Social Heath Insurance (General) Regulations, 2024 which are provided in the Social Health Insurance Act.
SHIF which has replaced the National Health Insurance Fund,will see every 25-year-old pay a mandatory minimum fee of Ksh300.
“A person who has attained the age of twenty-five years and has no income of his or her own or is living with the contributor shall be treated as a household separate from the contributor and shall pay Ksh300 per month,” the regulations read in part.
The Ministry of Health will engage financial institutions including; cooperatives and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development and other financial institutions to advance loans to youth who attain the mandatory deduction age but are still jobless.
Once they get formal employment, their salaries will start getting deducted immediately to clear the loans and make subsequent SHIF contributions.
Health Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha on Wednesday, January 24, revealed the rationale behind deducting 2.75 per cent of every Kenyan’s gross income to contribute towards the Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF).
Speaking during an interview with Citizen TV, Nakhumicha explained that the percentage was proposed by actuarial scientists domiciled at the Ministry of Health.
By BNN