Patients at Isiolo Referral Hospital. During times of economic uncertainty, citizens look up to the government for essential services like health and food.
The Covid-19 pandemic has not only exposed the gaps in health systems and infrastructure but also the high levels of vulnerabilities of individuals and households. The 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census puts the number of the poor in the country at 19.5 million. The pandemic has increased that. The World Bank reports that, by last November, income loss had pushed two million Kenyans into poverty.
During times of economic uncertainty, citizens look up to the government for essential services like health and food. Unfortunately, National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) offers limited financial protection with the poor and elderly and patients with chronic illnesses having the lowest access to them. This is in breach with Sustainable Development Goal 3, on everyone’s right to essential healthcare services, including financial risk protection.
