NAIROBI, Kenya- A Kenyan social media user has raised concern after discovering an unusual entry in her Social Health Authority (SHA) medical records indicating she had been treated for a urinary tract infection (UTI) on the same day she was physically at her workplace.
The patient, identified on X as Obeds Oriku, said he was surprised to find that his digital health record reflected a hospital visit, prescription of antibiotics, and paracetamol, despite not having visited any health facility.
“I am in the office, working and healthy, but my SHA records show I was treated today,” he wrote, adding that he had been diagnosed with UTI and prescribed medication.
The post quickly attracted attention online, with users questioning a possible scandal, as unscrupulous health facilities beat the system to steal from taxpayers.
From the records, the health facility that had allegedly treated him is based in Garissa County.
Since its rollout replacing NHIF, the Social Health Authority (SHA) has faced repeated scrutiny over fraud, system failures, and financial leakages.
One of the biggest scandals emerged after audits revealed that hospitals had submitted fake and inflated claims, including billing for services not rendered, double billing, and upcoding of procedures. The government later reported losses running into billions of shillings linked to fraudulent claims within months of launch.
In response, the Ministry of Health launched a nationwide crackdown, shutting down and investigating hundreds of facilities suspected of abuse of the system.
In another major audit, authorities said over 1,200 health facilities were closed or flagged in a widening fraud probe involving both SHA and the defunct NHIF system.
Investigations also exposed practices such as:
- Ghost patients being registered
- Fake admissions and inflated inpatient claims
- Conversion of outpatient visits into expensive procedures
- Use of stolen or shared patient codes
Critics have also questioned the system’s digital design and transparency, arguing that gaps in verification and data handling have made it vulnerable to manipulation, while others say it is still a transition-phase system undergoing reforms.
