Social Health Authority (SHA) acting CEO Ingasira Robert has announced that the authority has disbursed Ksh3.7 billion to health facilities.
In a statement on Tuesday, November 26, 2024, Robert said the amount entails Ksh1.25 billion for pending NHIF claims, Ksh1.1 billion under the Linda Mama program and Ksh1.35 billion for SHA capitation payments.
“In total, Ksh3.7 billion has been disbursed this week, aligning with the commitments made by His Excellency the President during his recent address to Parliament. We wish to assure the public, healthcare providers, and all stakeholders that SHA will also clear the October 2024 claims under SHA this week and will continue to process NHIF Claims,” Robert stated.
The CEO says that the government has resolved issues where some healthcare facilities were initially unable to offer services due to contractual challenges.
“We are pleased to report that contracts with these facilities have now been finalized and published, ensuring transparency and continuity in service delivery. We request that the HCPs should ensure that they sign the contracts to continue offering services to the public,” he added.
He also announced that the board has agreed to allow access to Primary Healthcare (PHC) at Level 4 facilities.
“While the Social Health Insurance Act No. 6 of 2023 allowed selective Level 4 facilities, the SHA board has allowed all Level 4 hospitals who want to be contracted to offer these services to address this gap created by the inability of level 2 and 3 to meet the demand. The members of the public therefore have more options in accessing the primary healthcare services which were initially only available at Level 2 and 3,” he stated.
NHIF to SHA
He also announced that the NHIF has officially transitioned to SHA, and all NHIF staff have been absorbed by the Public Service Commission (PSC).
“As stipulated in the Social Health Insurance Act No. 6 of 2023, transitional clauses; NHIF staff have all been seconded to SHA by PSC for six months to facilitate suitability assessments and interviews for permanent onboarding,” Robert said.
Staff not onboarded into the authority post-assessment will be deployed to other public institutions.