NHIMA NEEDS TO BE SAVED BECAUSE IT SAVES LIVES – DR CHITALU CHILIFYA
Former Health Minister in the PF regime Dr Chitalu Chilufya has called for the urgent saving of the National Health Insurance Management Authority (NHIMA) from collapse, warning that allowing it to fail would be walking into a “d£ath trap” for Zambians.
Dr Chilufya said that NHIMA plays a critical role in providing access to quality healthcare services, and its demise would lead to increased m0rbidity, m0rtality, and p0verty.
He attributed the current financial struggles of NHIMA to policy, strategic, and management inaction, despite warnings from the 2022 NHIMA Actuarial Valuation that the scheme would become insolvent by 2024 if reforms were not implemented.
According to Dr Chilufya, the collapse of NHIMA would have far-reaching consequences, including the erosion of progress made towards achieving Universal Health Coverage and the country’s Vision 2030 goals.
He stressed that it is imperative for the government to take immediate action to address the governance failures, expand contribution and membership, and implement financing reforms to save NHIMA.
Dr Chilufya has proposed several key policy steps, including the reconstitution of the NHIMA board, implementation of a solid contribution and membership expansion program, and a one-off deficit financing to plug the hole in outstanding claims.
He also emphasized the need to trigger immediate financing reforms, such as moving NHIMA contributions from basic income to gross income, introducing a statutory mandatory minimum contribution for both the formal and informal sectors, and providing a capital injection and appropriation for operations.
He noted that these reforms would not only raise additional income but also ensure that employers’ contribution avoidance is curbed.
The former health minister also highlighted the need for NHIMA to standardize prices for services for both the public and private sectors to contain costs.
He warned that if NHIMA is allowed to collapse, it would be a betrayal of the aspirations of achieving Universal Health Coverage, which aims to ensure that all Zambians access quality insured healthcare services without suffering.