Empirical Assessment of the Various Sustainable Financing Mechanisms for Health Care Services in Kenya

Many world economies including Kenya have over the issues endeavored to provide quality health care to its populace. However, the various macroeconomic performance experienced in the late 1980s, negatively affected the government’s ability to sustain the government funded health programs. This is demonstrated by high out-of-pocket spending, and the dwindling of donor support as well as stagnating budgetary allocation estimated to be way below the Abuja declaration of 2001. The high out-of-pocket spending has various economic effects especially among the poor including high financial catastrophe and the impoverishment of the poor. Since them various financing mechanisms have been suggested for consideration. The objective of the study was therefore to examine the viability of these financing mechanisms from the government’s health planners. The study established that the planners prefer financing health care through risk-pooling, dedicated taxes and issuance of health infrastructure bonds guaranteed by the central government. These financing mechanisms are in addition to the normal government budgetary allocation. The success of these financing mechanisms according to the planners will however, depend on the ability of the government to identify the poor, who might not be able to afford the premiums in the case of risk-pooling and consequently undertake sustained subsidization their contributions. Others include the ability to identify the products upon which the dedicated taxes will be levied in addition to lobbying the key stakeholders to support the scheme. Finally, establishment of the necessary legal framework to support the initiatives is also recommended.