SHA: Teachers to access free medical care
Health CS Aden Duale hosts a delegation from the Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) led by Secretary-General Collins Oyuu also in attendance were the Principal Secretary for Medical Services, Dr. Ouma Oluga, SHA CEO Dr. Mercy Mwangangi and Knut National Chairperson Patrick Munuhe.
Kenya's nearly 350,000 public school teachers will no longer pay out-of-pocket fees when seeking medical care at contracted facilities, following a binding agreement signed on Tuesday between the Ministry of Health, the Social Health Authority (SHA), and the Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut).
The Joint Communiqué, signed on Tuesday, April 28, 2026, resolves a series of operational disputes that had dogged the transition of the Mwalimu Cover to the Public Officers Medical Scheme Fund (POMSF).
Under the agreement, SHA has immediately withdrawn tariff locking, a system configuration that had been triggering co-payments at health facilities. Going forward, all POMSF-contracted facilities are strictly prohibited from charging teachers any fee at the point of service. Every contracted facility must offer teachers a "walk-in, walk-out" service, free of charge.
Death benefits released
The communiqué also confirms that 160 pending Last Expense Benefit claims, paid at Sh300,000 per deceased principal member, will be released to next of kin effective tomorrow, April 29, 2026. The delay in processing these claims had been a major grievance among teachers.
SHA has contracted ten hospitals in Turkey, India, and Saudi Arabia for specialised, life-saving treatment. The facilities include four Acibadem hospitals in Istanbul, Apollo Cancer Centre in Chennai, King Faisal Specialist Hospital in Riyadh, and Kims Hospital in Andhra Pradesh, among others. Officials confirmed the first patient is already travelling for treatment.
Within Kenya, the scheme now also covers In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) services at Nairobi West Hospital and Fertility Point.
SHA has committed to completing tariff negotiations with 3,566 Level 3 to Level 6 private and faith-based facilities across all 47 counties within four weeks, starting today. The Nairobi region has the highest number of targeted facilities at 853, followed by North Eastern at 850 and Nyanza at 566.
Until negotiations are concluded, the ban on co-payments remains in force.
To prevent disputes from escalating to Nairobi, county-level TSC and SHA committees will hold their first meetings within one week. A joint National Executive Council meeting with Knut leadership is scheduled for May 6–7, 2026.
Cabinet Secretary for Health, Aden Duale, has also committed to holding monthly meetings with private and faith-based healthcare providers to monitor claims processing and system efficiency.
The agreement was signed by Duale, Dr Mercy Mwangangi, Chief Executive Officer of SHA and Collins Oyuu, Knut Secretary General.
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