Duale, governors set deadline for SHA hospital contracts

Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale and governors have ruled out any further extension of Social Health Authority (SHA) facility contracts beyond October 14, 2026, setting a fresh deadline for public hospitals to complete the contracting process.

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The decision was reached on Monday, October 5, during a meeting between Duale and the Council of Governors (CoG) Health Committee, chaired by Mombasa Governor Abdulswamad Nassir.

The meeting brought together SHA, the Digital Health Agency (DHA), health-sector regulators and other stakeholders to review the implementation of the SHA 2026–2029 contracting cycle, known as HAKIKA, and address emerging challenges in the health sector.

The National and County Governments reaffirmed their commitment to ensuring eligible public health facilities complete the contracting process within the remaining period to guarantee uninterrupted access to healthcare for SHA beneficiaries.

To accelerate the process, SHA will establish HAKIKA contracting clinics in every county until October 14 and provide weekly progress updates to the CoG until all eligible facilities are contracted.

A Joint Technical Committee comprising representatives from SHA, the CoG and county health departments will coordinate implementation, oversee progress and address technical and operational challenges.

Under the agreement, each county health facility will retain an individual contract with SHA, with payments continuing to be channelled to its respective Facility Improvement Financing account.

To minimise delays, SHA will also accept relevant documentation held at the county level as part of the contracting process.

Facilities that meet all other requirements will be given an additional 30 days to submit outstanding documentation from the National Social Security Fund (NSSF), National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), fire safety authorities, National Council for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD) and the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC).

However, the conditional compliance period will not exempt facilities from their statutory obligations.

The stakeholders also emphasised the need for regulatory compliance, quality healthcare and patient safety, insisting that facilities must hold valid licences for the services they offer.

Laboratory, pharmacy and imaging services must have the relevant licences from the Kenya Medical Laboratory Technicians and Technologists Board (KMLTTB), the Pharmacy and Poisons Board (PPB) and the Kenya Nuclear Regulatory Authority (KENRA), respectively.

Facilities will only be contracted for services for which they are duly licensed, while Level 4 and Level 5 hospitals will have three months to meet compulsory laboratory licensing requirements.

On payments, the meeting agreed that clean claims submitted to SHA will be settled within 90 days of receipt and processed in the order they are received.

Where available funds are insufficient to settle all claims, unpaid clean claims will be recognised as certified liabilities and carried forward for settlement within the same financial year, subject to appropriated funds.

The discussions also addressed digital health, data protection, the security of county health information and the rollout of the PPB track-and-trace system.

The CoG committed to supporting Level 5 hospitals to complete their transition to the Health Management Information System (HMIS) by October 30, 2026.

SHA is also scheduled to meet County Executive Committee Members for Health on Tuesday, October 6, to strengthen coordination and accelerate the implementation of HAKIKA across the counties.

The engagement concluded with the signing of a joint communiqué on the contracting of county public health facilities under the SHA 2026–2029 contracting cycle.

The agreement affirms the commitment of the National and County Governments to accountability, improved service delivery and ensuring eligible public health facilities remain accessible to SHA beneficiaries.