Governor Muthomi Njuki has issued new healthcare directives under the Social Health Authority (SHA) to facilitate access to quality and affordable services to residents of Tharaka Nithi County.
In a media briefing at his Chuka Town offices on Wednesday, February 19, 2025, Governor Njuki ordered all patients registered with SHA to receive free outpatient services at all dispensaries and health centers within the county, regardless of whether they had made payments to the health scheme or not.
Additionally, those who have completed their SHA monthly payments are set to benefit from free outpatient and inpatient healthcare services at Level 4 and Level 5 facilities in the county at no extra costs. The listed hospitals include Chuka Level 5 hospital, Marimanti, Kibung’a and Magutuni Level 4 hospitals.
Governor Njuki noted that 123,486 persons were registered to SHA in the county, making it 27% of the total population.
“We are among the top 20 counties in SHA registration countrywide but that is not enough. A number of residents have been avoiding public health facilities with the worry of being asked to pay more money for healthcare services. Under SHA, our residents are now guaranteed quality and affordable services.”, he said.
The Governor urged residents to register to the healthcare cover, saying all health facilities including County SHA offices and Huduma Centres have registration desks. He also asked members of the public to make use of Community Health Providers (CHPs) who were also well equipped and trained to carry out the registration.
Alex Muthamia, the County SHA Manager clarified that the means test was a registration requirement to assess and determine premiums for health coverage, noting that low-income persons have an opportunity to appeal the required contributions if they are above KShs 1500.
In his third directive, Governor Njuki affirmed that all revenue systems in the county remain cashless and no employee is authorized to receive cash for government services. Njuki asked residents to report any such cases to the toll-free number 1513 for further action.
In a report by the Ministry of Health on 5th February, 18,988,530 Kenyans had registered for SHA. However, 4.3 million individuals who had migrated from NHIF were yet to update their profiles therefore affecting their eligibility for SHA services.
Additionally, 3.1 million Kenyans had undergone means testing to determine their premium contributions, where the ministry committed to work with county governments to boost enrollment.