Nakuru tutors ask TSC to suspend AON Minet teachers' medical cover
Kuppet Nakuru County officials sing a solidarity song as a past event. Teachers in Nakuru County have described their medical scheme as a "scam".
Teachers in Nakuru County have described their medical scheme as a "scam". The tutors claimed the the medical scheme does not serve their interests but is draining the national coffers.
Some of the teachers who spoke to Nation.Africa called their employer the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) to suspend the AON Minet Teachers' Medical Cover.
"Using this scheme has been a frustration galore and humiliation while seeking medical treatment," said John, a secondary school teacher from Molo sub-county.
"This medical insurance scheme has some unwritten and unspoken regulations which are introduced silently when teachers seek medical services. There is a limit of one outpatient visit per week. This is ridiculous. One can become sick any time in a week," said the teacher.
He added: "Sometimes this kind of arrangement is affecting our families who are supposed to be covered by this medical scheme."
The teacher poked holes in the services offered by the medical scheme describing them as "poor."
"Some of the hospitals that offer optical services in Nakuru Town are a mockery. They keep teachers waiting in the queue for hours and at the end of the day, the services they offer are very poor. Some are known to inflate medical bills and this has seen teachers receive many letters from National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) and TSC to explain why the bills are so high," said John.
Another teacher from the Subukia sub-county said some hospitals were prescribing generic drugs to teachers saying original drugs were not covered by their medical scheme.
"The medical scheme has many challenges that TSC must address if they want teachers to benefit from the scheme," said the teacher.
She added: "The scheme does not allow us to buy drugs for deworming for our children. This is important for some of us with young children who need constant deworming."
Another teacher in the Rongai sub-county claimed that some of the healthcare personnel employed by some service providers were foreigners and not qualified.
"The TSC should initiate an investigation through relevant government bodies to establish the qualification of some of these healthcare personnel as they seem not to be qualified," said the teachers.
