Cabinet Secretary in charge of Health Cleopa Mailu at a past event. [Photo: the-star.co.ke]
Health Cabinet Secretary Cleopa Mailu has announced plans to increase health budgetary allocation to 10 per cent of the total national expenditure.
The CS said the increase would be done gradually from the current 7 per cent to ensure it reaches Sh78 billion by 2022 in a push for universal health coverage.
In the 2017/2018 budget, the government allocated to the ministry Sh54.9 billion and allowed tax exemption on medical equipment.
Speaking in his Nairobi office, the CS said the increase would go hand in hand with provision of a conducive environment for investment in the health sector considering that Kenya is still dependent on foreign funding.
"Currently, the public health sector accounts for 55 per cent of health services," he said on Wednesday.
At the same time, Mailu also announced plans to enlist 100,000 community health volunteers to recruit 20 households each in the next one year in a move aimed at increasing the subscription of citizens to the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF).
The social insurer recently rolled out rapid registration exercise to increase the number of subscription by two million every year in order to reach the target of 20 million principal contributors.
"Health Ministry has a defined and comprehensive essential package for all Kenyans. At the same time, new services have been introduced under NHIF," the CS added.
This comes at a time President Uhuru Kenyatta on Wednesday directed the Health and Education ministries to enroll three million secondary schools students for the NHIF.
The directive, however, has raised questions since, currently; one has to be 18 years to be a member which locks out most high school learners.