Private hospitals have issued a two-week ultimatum to Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale, demanding the immediate settlement of long-pending NHIF arrears by September 9.

Through a strongly worded statement dated August 14, the Rural and Urban Private Hospitals Association of Kenya (RUPHA) expressed growing frustration over the government’s failure to fulfill its promise of payment, warning that continued delays are threatening service delivery across private healthcare facilities.

The association said it has now been over five months since President William Ruto gave a directive on March 5, instructing that all NHIF claims of Sh10 million and below be paid in full, while larger claims undergo a structured verification process.

However, RUPHA says no payments have been made to any health facility, whether public, private or faith-based, as of mid-August.

“We write to express our deep concern regarding the continued delay in the fulfilment of the Presidential directive issued on March 5 regarding the settlement of NHIF pending bills. As of August 14, it has been 162 days — more than five months — since this directive was issued, yet no healthcare facility has received any payment for the NHIF arrears it is owed,” read part of the statement signed by board member Miriam Wanjiku.

The situation has been made worse by the recent High Court ruling in Eldoret, which declared the NHIF Pending Bills Verification Committee unconstitutional.

The court found that the Social Health Insurance Act did not include transitional clauses to allow the formation of such a committee, and that using patient data in verification must be handled with caution.

The judgment has disrupted the Ministry of Health’s verification process, leaving thousands of claims in limbo.

The now-disbanded committee had been officially gazetted on March 28 and was assigned the task of auditing claims from July 2022 to September 2024. Its dissolution has left healthcare facilities without a clear process for recovering their dues.

During a press briefing on July 8, CS Duale had assured hospitals that the National Treasury had allocated Ksh5.3 billion to settle verified NHIF claims of Ksh10 million and below.

RUPHA now says the time for verbal promises is over and is calling for a formal commitment.

“We ask that you issue a formal written commitment to all providers confirming that verified NHIF claims of Ksh10 million and below will be settled on or before 9th September 2025, as earlier promised,” the statement continued.

In addition, RUPHA is asking the Health CS to direct the Social Health Authority (SHA) to publish the pending claim amounts per facility that are ready for payment within two weeks.

It is also pushing for the immediate settlement of all uncontested claims that had completed the NHIF-led verification and sign-off process during the 2023/2024 financial year.

The association has further requested that SHA resume its internal branch-led claims verification for hospitals that did not complete the earlier NHIF sign-off process.

They propose this be done over the next three months to ensure no provider is left behind.

Despite the mounting frustrations, RUPHA has affirmed its willingness to continue working with the Ministry of Health.

However, it insists that resolving the pending claims is crucial to unlocking much-needed working capital in the sector and supporting the goals of Universal Health Coverage under the Taifa Care framework.