SHA Fraud: Ruto says hospitals stripped of licenses will face fines, court action
By Kenneth Mwenda, August 30, 2025President William Ruto has announced a sweeping crackdown on health facilities found guilty of defrauding the Social Health Authority (SHA), revealing that over 1,000 hospitals have had their licences revoked.
Speaking at the installation ceremony of Bishop John Kiplimo Lelei as the first bishop of the newly created Kapsabet Catholic Diocese in Nandi County, Ruto said the government would not stop at shutting down fraudulent facilities.
“Tumeondoa leseni ya mahospitali zaidi ya 1000 ambao wanafuja pesa ya mambo ya afya. Na hatuaondoi leseni peke yake, tutawafuata watalipa hizo pesa, na tutawapeleka kortini,” he declared, promising that offenders would face both fines and prosecution.
The crackdown follows investigations into a network of health facilities accused of falsifying medical claims to the SHA. Reports indicate that some hospitals converted outpatient visits into inpatient claims and admitted patients unnecessarily to siphon funds, with ghost patients in some cases inflating the system’s claims by millions of shillings.
Ruto emphasised that technology and digitisation had made it easier to track fraudulent claims and detect non-compliant facilities.
“With the use of technology to verify claims, admissions, discharge, and claims are now digital and easy to track. That is why it is easy for us to discover these cases,” he said.
SHA fraud exposes widespread corruption
Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale earlier noted that since the rollout of SHA, rogue hospitals attempted to defraud billions. He added that the government had already shut down 728 non-compliant facilities, downgraded 301 by the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Council, and suspended services at 85 facilities in multiple counties.
Ruto also drew comparisons with the defunct National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF), which he said was crippled by corruption, leaving it with debts.
The ongoing reforms in the health sector aim to guarantee that healthcare is a right for every Kenyan, not a privilege for a few, and that all money in the Social Health Insurance Fund reaches genuine, life-saving services.