Experts Urge SHA Crisis Fix

Social Health Authority (SHA) scheme is simply unsustainable and requires an urgent review so as to save Kenyans from untold pain and suffering they have been facing since the rollout of the new system, the stakeholders suggested that the Ministry of Health fixes the bleeding urgently.

They called on the government and Parliament to take a keen interest in what Kenyans are saying about failures of the scheme that replaced the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF).

The groups decried the state of Primary Health Care (PHC), which President William Ruto’s Bottom Up Administration said at inauguration is focused on strengthening to reduce the curative burden in the country, saying it’s almost dead.

Talking in the meeting that occurred on Friday 28, that was hosted by the Health NGOs Network (HENNET) to discuss the future of healthcare financing, governance and sustainability.
“From the transition to Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) to the impact of dwindling donor resources, we just need to go back, review SHA and make it simpler.

“In fact we had a good system that was based on capitation, hospitals would be paid earlier even though people criticise it for other reasons. As a faith-based hospital, that system was working. We can go back, pick the things that were working and see if we can bring them back,” Mokua said.

Dr. Lishenga noted that SHIF, which is the one which is being touted as working, is funded by Kenyans.

“We are the ones contributing either 2.75 per cent or through Proxy Means Testing. So the Kenyan people are doing their part, making sure that the SHIF is funded,” he said and appealed to the government to also do its part because PHC is squarely its responsibility.

He said the ECCIF is the government’s responsibility, and as Kenyans carry the weight through premiums, through increased taxation, it is expected that government and Parliament work to restore increased funding for the sector.

HENNET Board Chair, Rosemarie Muganda challenged the government to admit that it has not done what it promised when the new system was coming into place.

As a country, sometimes it’s important to bite the bullet and say our intentions were good, but it has not turned out the way we expected,” she reiterated the need to go back to the drawing board.