They Were Stealing From NHIF- Ruto Claims Why Court Suspended Social Health Act

President William Ruto on Thursday, December 14 claimed that individuals who had for long benefited from corruption in the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) had contributed to the High Court's decision to suspend the planned implementation of the Social Health Insurance Act 2023 and other related Acts by the Ministry of Health.

Speaking in Baringo County during the Kimalel Goat Auction and Cultural Festival, the Head of State alleged that the individuals who moved to court to block the Social Health Act had done so out of fears that the President would ruin their looting activities at the insurance fund provider.

Ruto noted that the new Act consisting of three Bills which he assented to had included the Digital Health Bill will digitize health services through a Comprehensive Integrated Management Information System (CIMIS).

It will also enable the development of standards towards the provision of m-health, telemedicine, and e-learning in healthcare.

"There are some people who have taken us to court claiming they do not want this new law, and they are corrupt because they have grown used to looting from NHIF. 

"They have gone to court to block that law because we have indicated that we have a Digital Health Bill that will ensure that every health service delivery will be made public on the internet so that we get rid of the corrupt people that are stealing from public coffers and ruining health service delivery...and they cannot defeat us, we will deal with them, and I want to announce that if they want to keep letting theft take place at the Ministry of Health, I want to tell them it will not go on anymore," warned Ruto.

The Head of State affirmed that his government would not allow characters to blackmail them through court cases blocking several laws from taking effect, particularly those against Universal Health Coverage (UHC), vowing that he would expose them.

“We are not going to accept blackmail because the characters who are sponsoring court cases against UHC are the people who are beneficiaries of corruption in NHIF and health institutions that is why they have taken their fight to court,” said Ruto.

He added, “I want to tell you we will expose all of them and we will make sure that what we are doing in health is going to be delivered for the benefit of millions of Kenyans.”

The President further assured that he would use the powers bestowed upon him as the Head of State to take the fight to the corrupt individuals, by any means necessary.

"I will deal with them, Kenyans gave me the power to fight those corrupt individuals. I have already announced, I said there are three things; there is no way they will pass through," Ruto stood firm.

The Act which includes the following bills: The Social Health Insurance, Primary Health Care Act, and the Digital and Digital Health Act, was suspended until February 7, 2024 by the High Court.

The court temporarily barred the state from effecting the three new funds gazetted by Health Cabinet Secretary (CS) Susan Nakhumicha pending the determination of a case lodged in court by activist Joseph Enock.

Enock had, through his lawyer, Harrison Kinyanjui, argued that the Social Health Insurance Act 2023 is unconstitutional since the Executive usurped the role of the Parliament when enacting the new law.

The Social Health Insurance Act had carried the most significance since this is the one that abolished the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) officially for the first time since 1966.

By revoking NHIF and replacing it, President Ruto had sought to attain UHC as set out within his plan for a healthier nation espoused under the Bottom Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA).

In place of NHIF, Ruto created three funds namely Primary Health Care Fund, Social Health Insurance Fund, and Chronic Illness and Emergency Fund. The Social Health Bill was to enable all Kenyans to access quality care, regardless of their financial status.

Kenyans employed in the formal sector were to make a monthly contribution of 2.75 per cent of their salary capped at a minimum of Ksh300 and a maximum of Ksh5,000.