Private hospitals across the country are warning they may soon suspend essential services such as dialysis, cancer treatment and critical surgeries, citing prolonged delays in reimbursement from the Social Health Authority (SHA).

The looming withdrawal could cut off thousands of Kenyans from life-saving care, especially those who rely solely on SHA coverage and cannot afford to pay for treatment out of pocket.

The Rural and Urban Private Hospitals Association of Kenya (Rupha) says its members are sinking deeper into financial crisis, with many borrowing heavily to remain operational as the health authority delays payments. Some hospitals are already considering pulling out of SHA contracts entirely, saying the current situation is unsustainable.

“It is not fair that hospitals offer services and then have to beg for payment,” said Rupha chairperson Dr Brian Lishenga. “We have hospitals owed more than Sh2 million, and there is no way to run a hospital under these conditions.”

According to Rupha, hospitals have been forced to take loans to pay staff, buy medicine, and maintain machines for specialised treatments. Without timely reimbursement, many fear collapse.

An official from SHA, who spoke on condition of anonymity, attributed the problem to low participation from Kenya’s informal sector, which makes up nearly 83 per cent of the country’s workforce. The official said most informal workers had failed to follow through with required payments after undergoing the mandatory means testing process.

Figures from SHA show that of the 18.5 million Kenyans registered in the new health plan, just 3.5 million are from the formal sector. Although 4.6 million went through the means testing, only 1.2 million have ever made a payment, and only 500,000 are still contributing.

“This means we are depending on salaried Kenyans to run the kitty. Without the 2.75 per cent [contribution], we are unable to run our healthcare,” Dr Lishenga said.

Attempts to get a response from SHA chief executive Mercy Mwangangi were unsuccessful. Calls went unanswered and later efforts to get a response were not fruitful. SHA officials had earlier promised to issue a statement but did not follow through.

Meanwhile, Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale revealed that 1,058 health facilities have been shut down by the Ministry of Health across the country. Most of the closures, he said, were related to SHA-linked fraud and failure to meet required standards.

Speaking in Nakuru, Duale also said another 458 facilities have been downgraded as part of efforts to remove unlicensed and substandard service providers from the system.

“In collaboration with the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Council, we have closed down various facilities; some for defrauding SHA and others because of various reasons on non-compliance. We will continue with the crackdown, to streamline provision of healthcare services in the country,” Duale said.