MPs probe acquisition of new ICT system by Social Health Authority

The National Assembly has launched a probe into the purchase of a new multi-billion ICT registration system by the Social Health Authority (SHA).

This is after Members of the National Assembly's Health Committee raised concerns that the procurement process for this system might not be transparent.

On Tuesday, the committee led by Endebess MP Robert Pukose demanded that SHA's management provide procurement details, including those who tendered for the project.

The legislators also wanted to establish the total cost the Authority plans to spend on the technology.

Appearing before the committee, State Department for Medical Services PS Harry Kimtai said that SHA is well into the process of securing the technology.

"The procurement process of this system is at an advanced stage," Kimtai told the lawmakers.

The technology will handle claims, provide digital member services, healthcare empanelment (the process of assigning patients to a primary care provider) as well as pre-authorisation.

Legal hurdle

Recently, the High Court nullified the Social Health Insurance Act of 2023, which had replaced the National Health Insurance Fund, citing insufficient public participation as the primary reason.

A three-judge bench comprising Justices Alfred Mabeya, Robert Limo, and Fredrick Mugambi also nullified the Primary Healthcare Act of 2023 and the Digital Health Act of 2023.

The judges gave Parliament 120 days to make the necessary amendments, during which these laws will remain suspended.

State Department for Medical Services PS Harry Kimtai. (Photo: X/Harry Kimtai)

The lawmakers also poked holes in the transition process of the new health scheme that is scheduled to be launched on October 1.

Kisumu Central MP Joshua Oron cautioned that the pace at which the transition is being carried might not give the best results.

"The process is rushed. Do we believe that we can meet the targets by October 1 and implement the new scheme? Are these dates realistic?" he posed.

In response, PS Kimtai expressed confidence that they would beat the deadline and have the enhanced scheme operational.

"We are ready for the rollout, we have set everything in place and once we get the approval (of the human resource instruments by the Public Service Commission we will be able to onboard onto the new system," he added.

Public involvement

At the same time, the Health Committee chairman also mentioned that a lack of adequate public involvement has posed a major challenge for government programmes currently entangled in legal disputes.

Pukose stressed the importance of extensive public engagement, highlighting that the Ministry of Health could now implement thorough public participation and awareness campaigns regarding the Social Health Authority.

"One of the biggest challenges we face as a government in the courts is the lack of sufficient sensitisation, particularly regarding health laws. People often resort to legal action, claiming there was a failure or absence of sensitisation on these programmes," he said.

"Adequate sensitisation should not be selective; it must be inclusive and executed effectively. I believe this is an area that requires revisiting to ensure proper sensitisation activities are carried out," Pukose added.

Kimtai mentioned that the Ministry of Health is in the final stages of planning a series of awareness campaigns to educate the public about the advantages of SHA.

He clarified that SHA's current priorities include membership registration and educating the public about the benefits they can expect to receive.

"To that end, we are launching a national validation exercise for the tariffs and benefit packages. This will ensure that all SHA members are informed about their entitlements under the new system," Kimtai stated.

Only 464,263 Kenyans have enrolled in the Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) membership in 30 days, the government says.

The SHIF programme is part of the state's plan to realise the Universal Health Coverage touted as one of President William Ruto's legacy projects. The Fund was made mandatory requiring all Kenyans to register.

Despite a mass registration drive launched on July 1, 2024, the numbers fell short of a target of 15 million that was recently announced by President Ruto.

This also fell short of the current National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) membership of 14 million Kenyans.