RMNCAH Calls for Expedite passing of National Health Insurance

The Reproductive, Maternal, Neonatal, Adolescent Health and Nutrition RMNCAH ,CSO  platform has appealed to the government to expedite the process of approving the National Health Insurance bill.

 This can only be attained by the government scheduling the bill on the cabinet paper, to pave the way for it to be eventually passed by parliament as soon as possible.

 RMNCAH chairperson also Executive Director of  Faith for Family Health Initiative -3FHI  Jackie Katana, says the National Health Insurance scheme is a key tool for social risk protection that will enable the government to provide good health care services to all Ugandans

 Health insurance, according to the RMNCAH chairperson, would help families to mitigate high costs of accessing health services and also reduce the loss of working days and advance better health systems.

She was addressing  a high level stakeholders  engagement on Health Financing under the theme  "  National Health  Insurances as a means to attain  Social and Financial Risk Protection", held in Kampala on Wednesday.

This subsequently would enable households to save money which they would have spent on health care. The saved money would later be used to meet other basic needs such as school fees, nutrition and even invest it in business.

 50% of the cost of health care in Uganda comes out of the pockets of individuals who privately pay for the health care services.  Some of the health care costs borne by households include transport to health care facilities,  expenses on drugs and payment for  treatment in health facilities.

 “ As RMNCAH  CSO platform we are interested to see that no mother dies while giving birth,  because many of them are  dying  because of delay as they try to get transport to get to the health facilities , we have many children who also die because of diseases that could be  protected, we have many adolescents who get pregnant because of poverty . So we are looking at this National Health Insurance from the RMNCAH perspective to improve the performance indicators to make sure that the health outcomes are improved, but we are also looking at it as a social protection. “said Jackie Katana.

 The National Health Insurance according to Katana is a single “bullet” discharged, that would help with social economic transformation of Uganda. It would take care of   issues of poverty and income, education, nutrition and health.

 She committed to work with the ministry of health to implement the scheme and pledged to engage with the donor community to address any funding gaps as the implementation takes shape.

 His Eminence Sheikh Ali Waisswa the deputy Mufti and Chairperson 3FHI lauded members of parliament and the ministry of health for their contribution on the bill and expressed optimism that the National Health Insurance bill will soon be approved and signed into law.

 Currently in Uganda, the health delivery system is expensive, inefficient and not sufficiently responsive to the healthcare needs of the population.