NAIROBI – Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) has introduced new admission requirements for patients seeking inpatient care under the Social Health Authority (SHA) program. The changes aim to enforce accountability and ensure that only eligible beneficiaries access cover under the government’s Universal Health Coverage (UHC) initiative.
In a public notice issued Tuesday, the hospital clarified that SHA will not pay for inpatient treatment if the admission is not properly logged into the SHA system at the time of entry.
“To access services, patients must present a valid national ID linked to an active SHA membership,” the notice stated.
Before admission, patients must also obtain a reference number from SHA and show a confirmation message indicating the hospital visit has been successfully initiated. Those with inactive Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) accounts will not be admitted under SHA until the account is reactivated.
“If your SHIF is inactive at the time of admission, activate it immediately, return to the Health Information Desk and obtain a new reference number,” the hospital advised.
The new measures are part of KNH’s transition to SHA protocols, which were rolled out nationally to support the government’s commitment to achieving UHC.
The hospital urged patients to verify their SHIF status in advance to avoid delays or denial of care. Only admissions accompanied by a valid SHA reference will be covered.
SHA replaced the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) earlier this year as part of a broader healthcare reform agenda. The scheme requires all Kenyans to be registered and their SHIF contributions to be up to date in order to access benefits at accredited health facilities.
KNH remains one of the country’s largest referral hospitals and is central to the success of the SHA system. These new rules are expected to improve service delivery and reduce administrative gaps in processing health claims under the public cover.
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