The National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) will allow men to get medical cover for multiple wives if the new regulations are approved by Parliament.
The current NHIF structure provides medical cover for only one spouse.
The new regulations include a clause that will provide medical cover for men in polygamous relationships at an extra cost of KSh 500.
“Where a standard contributor includes more than one spouse as a beneficiary, the contributor shall remit an additional contribution to the Fund
“The rate of the additional contribution referred to in the sub-regulation shall be five hundred shillings in respect of each spouse,” read a clause in the republished regulations.
In April 2014, former President Uhuru Kenyatta signed into law a controversial marriage bill legalising polygamy.
This came even as a section of female Members of Parliament (MPs) walked out of parliament in disgust after their male counterparts voted through the amendment.
The female MPs argued that the decision to take on another wife would affect the whole family, including the financial position of other spouses.
The bill was also opposed by Christian leaders who urged the president not to sign it into law, saying it undermined Christian principles of marriage and family.
“The tone of that bill, if it becomes law, would be demeaning to women since it does not respect the principle of equality of spouses in the institution of marriage,” Archbishop Timothy Ndambuki, from the National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK) said.
In other news, NHIF proposed that Kenyans earning over KSh 100,000 monthly should contribute 1.7% of their gross salary to facilitate the universal healthcare coverage (UHC) plan.
“We proposed the 1.7% which we believe is fair and equitable and we still stand by that,” NHIF CEO Peter Kamunyo said.
Kamunyo said NHIF would head to the 13th parliament to review monthly contributions to reflect one’s income status.
