A Report After an Industrial Attachment

CHAPTER ONE

1.0 Introduction

I was an attaché at the NHIF Limuru office where I spent twelve weeks of internship as required for the award of a degree in Purchasing and Supplies Management. This chapter gives detailed information of the organization and the Procurement Department as a whole.

1.1 A Brief History of the National Hospital Insurance Fund

National Hospital Insurance Fund is a State Parastatal that was established in 1966 as a department under the Ministry of Health. The original Act of Parliament that set up this Fund in 1966 has over the years been reviewed to accommodate the changing healthcare needs of the Kenyan population, employment and restructuring in the health sector. Currently an NHIF Act No 9 of 1998 governs the Fund.

The transformation of NHIF from a department of the Ministry of Health to a state of corporation was aimed at improving effectiveness and efficiency. The Fund's core mandate is to provide medical insurance cover to all its members and their declared dependants (spouse and children). The NHIF membership is open to all Kenyans who have attained the age of 18 years and years and have a monthly income of more than Ksh 1000.

NHIF has 31 fully autonomous branches across the country. Each of these branches offers all NHIF services including payment of benefits to hospitals or members or employers. Smaller satellite offices and service points in district hospitals also serve these branches.

The National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) is the primary provider of health insurance in Kenya with a mandate to enable all Kenyans to access quality and affordable health services.

1.1.1 Program goals

National Insurance Fund is the primary health insurance provider in Kenya and is mandatory for all salaried employees, with contributions based on a graduated scale on income and automatically deducted through payroll. It is using mobile money to expand access to workers in the informal sector through creating a more convenient way to...