‘NHIF life hinges on accepting packages’

Juma Muhimbi, the chairman of the NHIF board of directors, said yesterday that the new rates would have started being used in 2018 after reviewing prices set out in 2016 but delaying techniques by some stakeholders hindered the move.

“But we are now on equal footing,” he said in his remarks at the NHIF working session with editors in Dar es Salaam.

NHIF announced new health benefit packages starting March 1, with Health minister Ummy Mwalimu affirming that the package's decision was reached following recommendations by an expert committee taking up concerns of public and private healthcare providers.

Bernard Konga, the NHIF director general, said there are more than 700 medicines in the package, where 200 drug types had their prices reduced and 200 drugs had their prices raised.

The fund will be reviewing health benefit packages each three years, on the basis of contracts entered with 9,467 health care providers, 72 percent being public health facilities.

A total of 6,852 health facilities belong to the government, 1,766 (19 percent) are privately owned and 849 are operated by religious organizations.

“We came up with the new rates considering the actual situation in relation to availability of health services in our country. Currently, the government has done major improvements in its hospitals, but also services such as CT-Scan, which were previously available at a few hospitals, are now provided at a number of health facilities countrywide,” he explained.

Until the end of last year, NHIF had a total of 4.9m members, equivalent to eight percent of the country's population, he said, affirming that health facilities are providing services to NHIF members universally.

The fund is closely monitoring their operations to ensure its members receive the desired services, he stated, highlighting that more than 20 private hospitals briefly suspended provision of services to NHIF members.

They have all reversed their decisions and are providing services under the newly announced health benefit packages, he specified, reiterating that the process of coming up with the new rates was inclusive.

Stakeholders including the Association of Private Health Sector Facilities in Tanzania (APHFTA), the Christian Social Service Commission (CSSC), and the National Muslim Council of Tanzania (BAKWATA) were fully engaged, he stated, asserting that 80 percent of private hospitals’ revenues arise from NHIF card holders.

At first, NHIF was only entering into contracts with public hospitals but following members’ views it was decided to include private hospitals, he said, elaborating that NHIF considers a number of criteria before entering into a contract with a hospital, like quality of service, medical equipment, availability of doctors and drugs.

APHFTA, CSSC and BAKWATA issued a joint statement announcing their decision to halt services for NHIF members, whereupon the minister directed the registrar of health facilities to take up the matter and issue a notice on the use of the new packages.

Patients already admitted were not to be removed as Section 152 of the Medical Practitioners and Dentists Act provides that if a hospital has admitted a patient, “it should not, under any circumstances, remove a patient from the hospital unless they have agreed themselves voluntarily.”