Medical Aid Society of Malawi (Masm) has suspended civil servants’ medical scheme, meaning that they can no longer utilise it to access services.
Communication we have seen from Masm to civil servants indicates that civil servants are not allowed to access medical help in facilities under the Masm scheme from April 01, 2025.
“We would like to inform you that the civil servants medical scheme is temporarily suspended effective April 01, 2025 until further notice,” the communication indicates.
Masm has not specified the reason behind the halt.
“We apologise for any inconvenience caused and assure you that efforts are ongoing to resolve the matter promptly. Updates will be communicated as soon as they are available,” it says.
However, an inside source has told us that the decision has been arrived at as the government is yet to settle bills for four months.
“Government has not paid us for four months and from April 1, all civil servants will have to be sent back when they seek our medical scheme [services] in health facilities,” he said.
A primary school teacher who did not want to be identified said the government was yet to start deducting their 10 percent contribution to the scheme.
“We filled the forms and, in my case, I have on several occasions been helped in hospitals using the scheme but money is yet to be deducted from me,” he said.
Malawi Congress of Trade Unions General Secretary Charles Kumchenga said he had been seeing the document circulating on social media.
“I have seen the notice but we are yet to receive an official communication; so, I cannot comment much,” he said.
Secretary for Human Resource Management and Development Blessings Chilabade did not pick up our calls.
However, government spokesperson Moses Kunkuyu, who is also Information Minister, said Masm had reinstated the civil servants.
“I have received communication from Masm that the issues that were there have been resolved and the civil servants have been reinstated,” he said.
President Lazarus Chakwera launched the initiative in December 2023, saying it would ease the burden that government employees were facing in accessing medical care.
Government was supposed to be contributing 90 percent ,with its employees paying 10 percent for scheme services.
Figures indicate that there are about 300,000 government employees.
On his part, economist Mavin Banda said with a sound cash flow, it was sustainable for the government to keep its employees on the medical scheme.
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