NHIF was on its deathbed, says PS Muthoni

PS Public Health and Professional Standards Mary Muthoni,address press on 14th March 2025 at MEDS headquarters located along Mombasa Road in Nairobi. [Edward Kiplimo,Standard]

The government has dismissed claims that National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) was a superior medical plan for Kenyans and defended the new scheme.

Principal Secretary for Public Health and Professional Standards, Mary Muthoni, defended the SHA framework, calling it a necessary shift.

She said the Social Health Authority (SHA) is a more sustainable model that ought to be supported.

PS Muthoni termed NHIF as a collapsing fund.

“For 60 years, NHIF was a collapsing fund, unable to meet the healthcare demands of Kenyans," she said.

The PS explained that NHIF was a single standing fund and noted that SHA introduces three distinct funds: The Primary Health Care Fund, the Social Health Insurance Fund and the Emergency, Chronic and Critical Illness Fund.

According to the PS, this makes it easy to manage and counter-check the fund. She also said this will also enable the fund deal with chronic and critical illnesses.

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She was speaking in Nairobi on Wednesday during a Regional Health Promotion Conference (RHPC) 2025, co-hosted by the Ministry of Health and VSO Kenya, a volunteer involving INGO.

The two days conference brought together key stakeholders to discuss health equity, community empowerment and universal health coverage (UHC).

Kenya’s Social Health Authority (SHA), was a major point of discussion, a reform that continues to spark debate across the healthcare sector.

PS Muthoni, however acknowledged the SHA system’s initial challenges, including system downtime and service gaps, but maintained that improvements were already visible.

“Yes, there have been issues, but we have been listening and adjusting. For instance, oncology tariffs were previously set at Sh300,000, which was insufficient. We have now raised it to Sh550,000 to ensure patients complete their treatment,” Muthoni stated.

The PS also addressed the expansion of healthcare services under SHA, particularly for diseases that were previously neglected.

“We have incorporated areas, diseases that never used to be touched like mental health care, right from primary health care to tertiary care because we have realised mental health is actually a required medication. It is not something you can say is safely at the moment and go away without really being checked properly,” she said.

Muthoni highlighted ongoing challenges, including system downtimes, but noted improvements.

“I heard about system downtime, which has pretty improved from when we established in October last year. We don’t have as many complaints as we used to have, and more facilities are being contracted so that we can offer care,” she added

PS also called for a collective effort to ensure SHA’s success. “If you go to a facility, and the facility is not contracted, but they ask you for money, then let’s address that issue directly instead of discrediting SHA as a whole,” she said.

Muthoni urged better communication and transparency, stating, “We have a committee that intentionally and deliberately looks into these comments. Communication is key, and it is a collective responsibility.”

The conference also highlighted the role of health promotion in achieving UHC.

VSO Co-chief executive, Donne Cameron, emphasised that investing in community-led health promotion is key to sustainable health systems.

“The best investment we can make is empowering individuals and communities to take control of their own health,” Cameron said.

Adding, “Health, of course, is not just the absence of disease, but the state of well-being of our whole lives; physical, mental and social. Protecting that well-being is a fundamental human right, and it is our duty to advocate for those policies and practices that promote health equity and justice.”

Cameron also addressed concerns about donor funding shifts, urging African countries to take more ownership of healthcare financing.

“There’s no doubt we have relied on donor resources for too long. This is a crisis, but also an opportunity to prioritise our own resources effectively,” she noted.

She called for transparency and accountability in healthcare spending, stressing that trust in the system is crucial.

“If communities see that their contributions lead to tangible health improvements, there will be greater support for national health funding models,” she added.

Another key theme at the RHPC was the need to strengthen community-based healthcare.

Muthoni reiterated the government’s commitment to preventive health measures, highlighting the role of Kenya’s 107,831 community health promoters.

“These individuals are crucial in early disease detection, maternal health and vaccination campaigns. By focusing on prevention at the household level, we reduce the burden on hospitals and lower overall healthcare costs,” she said.

Despite concerns over SHA implementation, Muthoni reassured stakeholders that the government remains responsive to public feedback.

“We are open to refining the system. If a facility is not offering services as expected, let’s address that specifically rather than discrediting the entire framework,” Muthoni urged.

As RHPC 2025 continues, stakeholders are keen to see how Kenya navigates the transition to SHA while maintaining health service accessibility.

The conference serves as a platform for knowledge exchange, with other African nations observing Kenya’s reforms to assess their potential for replication.