If Parliament approves the proposed law, the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) will publish regulations allowing men to obtain medical coverage for multiple wives, a departure from medical insurance norms.
The regulations include a provision that provides medical coverage to polygamous families on the condition that the male member pay an additional Sh500 for the additional wives.
This differs from the current NHIF rules, which cover one spouse and a maximum of five children.
For medical coverage, most private insurance companies, especially those backed by employers, recognize the principal member, one registered spouse, and up to four children.
Members who have two wives are frequently required to have another cover for the second wife, who is listed as the primary member.
The NHIF’s decision to recognize multiple wives comes more than eight years after former President Uhuru Kenyatta signed a marriage Bill legalizing polygamy into law.
It brought civil law, which stated that a man could only have one wife, into line with customary law, allowing men to have more wives without consulting existing spouses.
“Where a standard contributor includes more than one spouse as a beneficiary, the contributor shall remit an additional contribution to the Fund,” says a new clause in the republished regulations.
“The rate of the additional contribution referred to in the sub-regulation shall be five hundred shillings in respect of each spouse.”
The NHIF is seeking community input on the new regulations ahead of parliamentary approval for the new rates and the clause backing members with multiple wives.
