Online Reporter
Rumbidzayi Zinyuke
Senior Reporter
THE proposed National Health Insurance Bill has moved closer to Cabinet approval after completing stakeholder consultations, drafting and technical peer review, Health and Child Care Minister Dr Douglas Mombeshora said at the post-Cabinet briefing yesterday.
The scheme is expected to enable the country to pool resources, expand access to essential health services and protect families from catastrophic healthcare costs. Once operational, it will allow citizens to access services across public and accredited private health facilities without paying large sums at the point of care.
Dr Mombeshora said the Bill was now awaiting a final peer review by ministers serving on the Cabinet Committee on Legislation before being presented to Cabinet for approval and subsequently tabled in Parliament.
The NHI framework remains central to the Government’s efforts to achieve universal health coverage and ensure that Zimbabweans and residents can access healthcare without financial barriers.
“We have actually moved a long way towards achieving better health access through the establishment of National Health Insurance. But it is a process. The initial stages have been completed. We presented the principles to Cabinet and they were approved.
“We conducted extensive consultations with stakeholders throughout the country and that stage was completed. We then moved to the drafting stage. We produced the first draft, made corrections and prepared the second draft. We now have the final draft Bill,” he said.
Dr Mombeshora said the Bill had subsequently undergone further scrutiny after the Cabinet Committee on Legislation identified issues requiring correction and directed that a technical peer review be undertaken.
“The technical peer review was completed and the ministers who are members of the committee are now expected to conduct their review. That was supposed to have taken place last Friday, but due to unforeseen circumstances it has been moved to a later date,” he said.
“Once it is approved by the Cabinet Committee on Legislation, it will go to Cabinet for final approval before being taken to Parliament,” he said.
Dr Mombeshora said the proposed insurance scheme would ultimately allow citizens and residents to access services at public institutions and participating private facilities.
“That is our best hope of improving healthcare access and ensuring that every citizen and resident of Zimbabwe can access health services at our institutions, as well as at private facilities that agree to become part of the scheme,” he said.
Existing arrangements provide free or subsidised services to certain groups, including people with mental health conditions, pregnant women, people aged over 65 and children under five, although the benefits vary.
Currently, people who cannot afford healthcare at public institutions are required to obtain letters from the Department of Social Welfare to access services free of charge.
Dr Mombeshora said the National Health Insurance scheme would provide a more sustainable mechanism for financing healthcare and reducing financial barriers to accessing services.
The development comes as the Government continues implementing reforms aimed at strengthening the health system and expanding access to quality healthcare.
Cabinet yesterday approved the Health Sector Update Report for the period ending July 2026.
Speaking during the post-Cabinet briefing, Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Dr Zhemu Soda said the reforms were being implemented in line with the National Development Strategy 2 (2026-2030), universal health coverage and the National Health Strategy.
“During the first half of 2026, Government continued to implement reforms to strengthen health system governance, expand access to quality health services, modernise infrastructure, improve the health workforce and enhance the availability of medicines and medical technologies.
“Consequently, significant progress was recorded across several health sector strategic areas, while challenges continue to be addressed through innovative interventions,” said Dr Soda.
Major achievements during the review period included the launch of the National Health Strategy 2026-2030, increased health financing and high utilisation of released capital project funds.
Government also recorded a reduction in health worker vacancies while addressing shortages in specialist posts, alongside improved availability of essential medicines.
Other gains included progress towards global HIV targets among adults, improved childhood immunisation coverage, reduced institutional maternal mortality, expansion of cervical cancer screening and treatment services, as well as strengthened epidemic preparedness and cholera response measures.
Dr Soda said the Government was continuing to modernise health infrastructure, including the completion of Lupane Provincial Hospital, while work on operationalising the National Health Insurance framework was also progressing.
The Health Sector Update Report also highlighted ongoing Government efforts to improve the availability of medicines, strengthen infrastructure, increase health financing and enhance the health workforce as part of the broader drive towards universal health coverage.
