Doctors ask govt to expedite National Health Insurance Scheme Bill

Medical doctors have appealed to the government to expedite the establishment of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) to reduce gaps in access to quality health care in the country.

The doctors spoke during the Association of Surgeons of Uganda's (ASOU) Annual Surgical Scientific Conference and Surgical Landscape Exhibition second edition which ended on Thursday in Entebbe. 

Dr Frank Asiimwe, the outgoing president of ASOU, said having the “NHIS in place would reduce constraints associated with limited funding to the health sector.”

However, he appealed to government to increase funding of the national health budget from the current 8.9 per cent to at least over 12 per cent.

Kampala Hospital Chief Executive Officer Dr Peter Kibuuka said the private sector should be brought on board to make the NHIS work for all Ugandans.

“When it [NHIS] comes, which we really look forward to, every Ugandan will have access to quality care because you will go to the best clinic next to them if it is accredited or you go to a government facility,” he noted.

According to him, most private facilities have already invested heavily in equipment and have human resources to handle complex medical conditions.

Currently, the health sector is struggling to address gaps such as poor or limited infrastructure in some medical facilities, limited quantity of drug supply due to low budget allocation, and low numbers of doctors and specialists in the public service, according to information from the Health ministry.

Dr Diana Atwine, the permanent secretary of the Health Ministry, said they have already done their part as the Ministry.

“The NHIS, as far as the Ministry of Health is concerned, we finished our job. We did the consultation, wrote the paper and submitted to cabinet. It is until cabinet discusses it that it will come to [parliament],” she said.

“We want this NHIS because we know it will improve on risk pooling and it will make us more responsible and reduce catastrophic expenditures on health care,” she told Monitor.

Health minister Dr Jane Ruth Aceng said the notion that healthcare should be free of charge is hindering the progress of the health system.

"Health is expensive. I have moved to many places in this world. I have never found where services in health are given free of charge except in Uganda. We are hiding our heads in the sand and pretending that services can be free," she said. 

"Because healthcare is expensive and we don't have money, we are all aware that the NHIS Bill has been on the agenda since last year, it needs to be fast-tracked because it is the only way we are going to mobilise additional resources for health. We cannot keep talking about free health services, somebody must pay for it," she added.

According to information from the Ministry of Health, each Ugandan is expected to pay Shs15,000 per year if the NHIS Bill is passed by Parliament and signed into law.