State now promises to clear hospitals' debt

The government has committed to settle debts owed to private and faith-based health facilities by the defunct National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF), starting with a disbursement of Sh1.5 billion within 90 days.

Medical Services Principal Secretary Harry Kimtai announced this during a meeting with religious leaders, addressing concerns over the delayed payments, which have severely affected healthcare providers.

The PS’s pledge followed a press briefing that was abruptly called off. The meeting focused on the financial distress faced by health facilities, particularly those run by faith-based organisations, which are owed billions of shillings.

This financial burden, exacerbated by the troubled transition to the new Social Health Authority (SHA) scheme, has left many facilities struggling to maintain operations. Some are even considering selling assets to stay afloat.

To alleviate the crisis, Mr Kimtai outlined plans for further payments and acknowledged the challenges posed by technical hitches during the SHA transition.

The issue at hand is the billions of shillings owed to private and faith-based health facilities by the defunct NHIF, an issue that religious leaders were to raise in the failed press briefing.

“There is distress as far as finances are concerned, and as members of the board we thought that we should come together appraise ourselves, look at where challenges are and see if there is any way and continue maybe dialoging with the government,” said Reverend Charles Asilutwa.

But Kimtai promised to clear the debts within 90 days, starting with an initial disbursement of Sh1.5 billion.

The government owes healthcare facilities a staggering Sh30 billion, with counties owed between Sh8 billion to Sh12 billion. This financial burden has left many healthcare providers, particularly faith-based organisations, struggling to maintain services.

The PS acknowledged the challenges, saying, “One of the biggest challenges which we face is the outstanding debts which the former NHIF owes the facilities, we have agreed that the committee that was formed under my leadership will continue meeting together with the Treasury to fast track payments of the outstanding debts,” said Kimtai.

According to sources, the government had to work overnight to forestall the press conference called by the Faith Based Organisations under the umbrella of Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims, Christian Health Association of Kenya and Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops demanding the payment of about Sh7 billion, which they say had almost ground their operations.

Some facilities are reportedly facing such severe financial distress that they are considering selling assets just to afloat. To address the financial crisis, the PS said the government has committed to reducing debts owed to different health institutions.

“We have already secured Sh1.5 billion to start dispersing to all healthcare facilities. We are going to release another Sh3 billion to these facilities,” said Kimtai.

The abrupt return of NHIF services for civil servants, even as the rest of the population struggles with the new system, has further fueled perceptions of inequality and mismanagement.

Healthcare providers, particularly those in the faith-based sector, have raised alarm over the challenges they face. From system compatibility issues to concerns about how pending bills will be settled, these organisations—which often serve the most vulnerable populations—find themselves caught between their mission to provide care and the practical realities of a dysfunctional system.

But the PS said after meeting the religious leaders, the PS said there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

“These faith-based have also agreed to join the technical team that we shall form together with the counties that each of the facilities will be visited and any challenges that will be faced in the system will be ironed out, we do know that some of them do not have the credentials and this credentials will; be issued once the officers reach the ground,” Kimtai said. 

Reports from across the country paint a grim picture, of patients being turned away from hospitals, forced to pay cash for services, or worse, told to “go die in the villages” if they cannot afford treatment.

One particularly heartbreaking incident, reported recently, tells of Elizabeth Cheboi,66, who lost her life due to missed dialysis treatment.

She was asked to pay cash for a service that should have been covered under the new health insurance scheme.

The government’s handling of the transition has raised more questions than answers. The transition to SHA has also been marred by technical hitches, leaving confusion among healthcare providers, and a lack of clear communication from the government.

According to the PS, about 40 per cent of healthcare facilities have successfully logged into the new system. This technical failure has left many hospitals unable to verify patient insurance status, leading to denied services or demands for cash payments.

Kimtai announced deployment of ICT officers to counties and healthcare facilities to address technical issues, but with a two-week timeline for this process, many patients are left in limbo.

Consequently, the PS, who has been instrumental in the implementation of SHA, says the government is keen to work closely with all institutions for a smooth implementation of the new health scheme.

A fortnight ago, an event organised by the Ministry of Health and three companies involved in the Social Health Authority digitisation technology, failed to take off after top officials from the ministry and the three companies, including the PS, failed to show up.