President William Ruto in a passout parade of police officers/FILEPolice, Prisons and National Youth Service (NYS) officers will benefit from an expanded medical cover under a new Social Health Authority (SHA)-backed scheme.
The scheme, the government says, will improve healthcare while significantly reducing insurance costs.
The Ministry of Interior and National Administration said the new package, which takes effect in the new financial year, almost halves the cost of medical insurance while broadening benefits for members of the disciplined services.
"Looking into the new financial year, we have almost halved the cost of medical cover and expanded the benefits for Police, Prisons and National Youth Service officers through the new Social Health Authority-backed medical scheme," the ministry said.
It described the package as one of the most significant welfare reforms for Kenya's disciplined services under President William Ruto's administration.
"This reform ensures our men and women in uniform receive comprehensive healthcare while serving the nation," the ministry added.
Under the new arrangement, officers will now receive treatment for pre-existing medical conditions, a benefit that was excluded under the previous scheme.
The government has also expanded the network of accredited health facilities from about 600 hospitals under the old scheme to more than 10,000 healthcare facilities nationwide under SHA, giving officers wider access to medical services.
Another major change is that overseas treatment will now be available to all officers regardless of rank. Previously, the benefit was restricted and was not accessible to every officer.
The scheme also removes the previous cap of six dependants, allowing officers to register all eligible dependants without numerical restrictions.
In addition, the new package introduces funeral and last-expense benefits, which were not available under the previous medical cover.
The ministry said the premium structure has also been redesigned, replacing the previous blanket arrangement with structured contributions and benefits tied to specific categories.
According to the ministry, the reforms will deliver substantial savings to the government while maintaining similar healthcare benefits.
Previously, the government spent approximately Sh9 billion annually on medical insurance for officers in the three services. Under the new arrangement, officials say the cost has been reduced by about half.
The reforms are part of the broader rollout of the Social Health Authority, which replaced the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) as the country's national health insurance system.
The government has maintained that the transition to SHA is intended to expand access to healthcare, improve efficiency in service delivery and strengthen financial protection for all Kenyans, including public servants.
The enhanced package for the disciplined services is expected to improve the welfare of thousands of police officers, prison officers and NYS personnel, many of whom work in high-risk environments and require reliable access to comprehensive healthcare for themselves and their families.
