Which is the Best Maternity Cover Between NHIF and Linda Mama?

Having an affordable medical cover is one of the best investments you can ever have for yourself. It will be more useful especially if you have an unplanned pregnancy and you are not financially stable to afford services from a good private hospital.

Today we have options when it comes to medical cover insurance. We all want to spend less and get quality treatment. NHIF and Linda Mama Medical covers are some of the affordable covers for any expectant mother.

Let’s take a look at some of the reasons why mothers would prefer one of the covers over the other.

NHIF Cover

NHIF is being improved to accommodate the common Mwananchi. With this cover, expectant mothers have access to antenatal visits, maternity cover of up to 10,000 shillings for normal delivery while a C-section delivery is covered up to 30,000 shillings, postnatal care, and one-year child care in all NHIF- accredited facilities.

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Application for NHIF Cover is free and you can choose your preferred Facility. If you wish to join the voluntary category, you will be required to pay 500 shillings per month as contributions. For registration, you will be required to have the following documents.

• NHIF registration form original and 2photocopies of the same
• Passport photo (original) Of the applicant and the beneficiaries if any.
• Identity card or a copy of your ID
• Birth certificate original and a copy

Apart from maternity services, NHIF also has its benefits such as outpatient services including consultation fees, physiotherapy services, drugs dispensation, laboratory examinations, wellness and counseling, health education, and immunization.

Linda Mama Cover

This is a free maternity Cover run By NHIF although it is sponsored by the Government of Kenya. The cover offers free maternal care services for expectant mothers who are Kenyan citizens.

Once you are a registered member, normal delivery is free and it also covers the cesarean section which can be quite costly.

After birth, it can also cover child immunization services in all NHIF accredited public hospitals and some low-cost private NHIF contracted hospitals.

The cover expires in 6 months after delivery. Therefore, it is important to register as an NHIF member in the event of any complication arising from giving birth after the expiry period, as it will not be covered under Linda Mama.

To register and access the services, here are the three ways to do so.

• 1 Register online through USSD *155#
• At NHIF service points and Huduma centers countrywide
• At NHIF contracted Health facilities

Linda Mama is the ideal cover for maternity services as it is free of charge but it is better to be prepared with your NHIF cover too in case of any complications during birth or any other treatment afterward once the cover expires.

EDITOR’S NOTE: 

Article by Doreen.