Efforts by the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) to onboard more than 360,000 teachers onto the Social Health Authority (SHA) insurance scheme hit a dead end due to inadequate infrastructure, the Commission’s CEO Nancy Macharia has revealed.
Speaking before the National Assembly Education Committee, Macharia disclosed that SHA lacked the nationwide capacity to absorb the large number of teachers, forcing TSC to stick with its current provider, Minet. “Last year, when we had issues with Minet, we wanted to move our teachers to SHA. We have always wanted to have our teachers under the national insurer, even during the NHIF days,” she said.
According to Macharia, SHA estimated it would require Ksh.37 billion to accommodate the teachers, yet admitted it was not prepared to undertake the task this year. This revelation comes amid rising complaints from educators about poor service delivery under the current Minet contract, worth Ksh.20 billion.
Committee Chairperson Julius Melly condemned the quality of healthcare teachers are receiving. He highlighted a case where a teacher was detained in solitary confinement at a hospital for three months over unpaid bills, despite being insured. “What kind of insurance cover is this? It’s a mongrel — it has no head or tail,” he lamented.
Luanda MP Dick Maungu also questioned the system’s efficiency, citing delays in medical approvals due to centralized processing. He suggested clustering teachers by job group or region to streamline services. “With Bliss Health Care as the master capitator, the system is overwhelmed,” Maungu noted.
Macharia acknowledged that financial constraints and untimely disbursements have limited TSC’s ability to offer comprehensive insurance. “If our teachers were to get the best medical services, they need to be fully insured. But we are unable to do that because of budgetary constraints,” she told MPs, appealing for increased funding.
The standoff highlights the urgent need for reforms in the public health insurance framework to ensure teachers, who are key public servants, receive the quality healthcare they deserve.
