Health Cabinet Secretary Hon. Aden Duale convened a significant meeting with private healthcare providers and senior officials from the Social Health Authority (SHA) to discuss enhancing service delivery under the Taifa Care model. The meeting aimed to address the challenges and opportunities in scaling up the Social Health Insurance (SHI) system as part of the government’s broader goal of achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) in Kenya.
The discussions centered on ensuring that health services remain uninterrupted during the early stages of the SHI rollout. One of the key aspects of the meeting was the commitment to address outstanding debts owed by the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF). The government announced a plan to begin repaying NHIF arrears amounting to Ksh 5.3 billion, with priority given to hospitals owed between Ksh 1-10 million. Claims exceeding Ksh 10 million will undergo verification by an independent committee before payments are made. This initiative aims to ensure the financial stability of healthcare providers while protecting public resources.
In addition, several action points were agreed upon to enhance the collaboration between the SHA and private healthcare facilities. These included the appointment of relationship managers at SHA to manage the interactions with contracted facilities, the creation of a joint SHA-DHA service desk at both SHA headquarters and Huduma Centres, and a commitment to real-time communication on any policy updates related to the rollout.
Hon. Duale emphasized the importance of involving private healthcare providers and faith-based organizations (FBOs) in the nationwide rollout of the County-to-County Taifa Care initiative. He reiterated that the private sector has a crucial role to play in the country’s health reform agenda, noting that timely payments from SHA would be key to sustaining long-term healthcare delivery.
The meeting brought together representatives from 103 private healthcare facilities in seven counties, including Nairobi, Kajiado, Embu, Machakos, Kiambu, Nyeri, and Kirinyaga. Senior Ministry of Health officials, including Principal Secretary for Medical Services Dr. Ouma Oluga and SHA CEO Dr. Mercy Mwangangi, were also in attendance. The event marked a significant step toward aligning public and private efforts to enhance healthcare access and quality across Kenya.
