NHIF seeks to harness universal health insurance potential
The director general of the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF), Bernard Konga, speaks during a recent interview with Mwananch Communications Ltd reporters in Dar es Salaam. Photo | Sunday George
What you need to know:
- The health insurance fund, presently under the regulation of the Ministry of Health, is exploring legal amendments to enhance its competitiveness against private insurance firms
Dar es Salaam. The National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) has identified its focus areas ahead of the planned implementation of the Universal Health Insurance (UHI) Act.
President Samia Suluhu Hassan has already assented to the UHI Bill, which was passed by Parliament last month.
NHIF director general, Mr Bernard Konga, said in an interview that the government-run institution is ready to enter the competition as it’s investing in technology.
The Fund, he said, will invest heavily in providing education to the public so that more Tanzanians can join and get better health services.
“We are grateful to President Samia Suluhu Hassan for reaching that decision to allow UHI in the country. A few countries have succeeded; many have failed due to the complexity of health insurance. So this is a big step. We are ready to enter the competitive market and we have set several strategies to achieve that,” said Mr Konga in an interview.
Mr Konga told The Citizen that currently the fund serves more than five million Tanzanians and the plan is to reach all Tanzanians if possible by investing in technology that will simplify its operations.
The Parliament endorsed the Universal Health Insurance Bill on November 1, 2023, after the government unveiled its potential sources of money to finance health insurance for poor Tanzanians.
The UHI Act was first brought to the House for the first time in September 2022 but was recalled before deliberations after the parliamentary committee analysed it and took into consideration public concerns over some sections, including the lack of clear financing mechanisms for people who cannot afford it.
According to Mr Konga, UHI is a great opportunity for NHIF, as contributions would increase.
"We will change the laws governing us so that we may be regulated by the Tanzania Insurance Regulatory Authority (Tira). We have been regulated by the ministry of Health, not Tira. We will also change our internal guidelines and regulations so that we can enter the competitive market," he said.
He said, "We have started buying data systems to store our customers' information. Similarly, some employees have gone to study abroad so that they can have an understanding of UHI and be ready to serve clients."
Likewise, the fund will invest more in public education because, with education on the importance of health, it can compete for universal health insurance.
In addition to that, the fund has also made improvements to the benefits package 2023 review, which will see an increase in prices and costs of some services and a decrease in others to align with the market situation.
He said the improvements that will start in January next year are part of the preparation for UHI because they will remove some complaints from customers.
On Monday this week, NHIF announced its new benefit packages, which, among other things, will reduce and increase service costs to improve the health sector.
