Deputy President (DP) Kithure Kindiki has admitted that the Kenya Kwanza administration is facing financial difficulties, in as far as actualization of the Universal Health Care (UHC) initiative is concerned.
Speaking on Wednesday when he visited the Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) so as to evaluate the implementation of the Taifa Care program under UHC, Kindiki said the government is facing financial challenges in facilitating Community Health Promoters (CHPs).
CHPs are integral in providing primary healthcare services to Kenyans in remote places, before they are taken to various levels of health facilities, if need be.
The second in command linked the challenges to the withdrawn Finance Bill, 2024.
“As you know, the revenue-raising instruments that were proposed through the Finance Bill, 2024 did not materialize, and that affected funding of sectors across government,” he said.
Budgetary adjustments, he said, will be employed to make sure primary healthcare provision mechanisms are not greatly affected.
“But nevertheless, even with the shortfall, we will go out of our way to continually adjust our budget to make sure that primary healthcare is not left out.”
“While most of the teething problems have been resolved, the government is working to streamline all outstanding issues to ensure that hospitals provide services in an efficient and timely manner,” he added.
The DP who was accompanied by among others, Cabinet Secretary (CS) for health Deborah Barasa was pictured engaging with patients and healthcare workers.
The move, he said, sought to identify areas that further improvement in service delivery.
“The visit reaffirms the government’s dedication to strengthening the health system and ensuring equitable access to quality healthcare through the Taifa Care program,” noted the DP.
Kindiki said 17 million Kenyans are now registered under the Social Health Authority (SHA), since the new health scheme was rolled out in October 2024.
