NYERI, Kenya – Nyeri County Referral Hospital has appealed to Parliament to help it recover more than Sh16 million mistakenly paid to a neighbouring private hospital by the Social Health Authority (SHA).
Appearing before the National Assembly’s Committee on Health, the hospital’s Medical Superintendent, Dr. Benson Muchiri, revealed that between February and May this year, claims worth Sh56.1 million were wrongly processed in favour of the other facility.
“Out of this amount, the hospital spent Sh16.7 million before the error was detected. The remaining Sh39.3 million was redirected to our account, but despite our efforts, recovery of the balance has been unsuccessful,” Dr. Muchiri told MPs.
The legislators, led by Nyeri Town MP Duncan Mathenge, pledged to take up the matter, saying similar errors had been flagged elsewhere.
“That is a grave mistake by SHA. Unfortunately, it is not an isolated case, and the Committee will ensure corrective action is taken,” Mathenge assured.
Hospitals Struggling Under Delayed Claims
Dr. Muchiri added that delayed reimbursements from SHA have worsened the hospital’s financial woes, with pending claims now standing at Sh142.5 million.
“Out of total claims worth Sh339.6 million, only Sh197.1 million has been paid, translating to just 58 per cent,” he said.
He also disclosed that the now-defunct National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) still owes the hospital Sh156.6 million.
Earlier, the Committee toured PCEA Tumutumu Mission Hospital, where CEO Kinya Mukiindia warned that the facility risked closure over unpaid claims.
Tumutumu is owed more than Sh218 million — Sh128 million from SHA and Sh89 million from NHIF.
MPs expressed concern that delays and erroneous payments were undermining the sustainability of both public and private hospitals, threatening the rollout of the government’s new insurance scheme.
“The Committee’s tour of public and private medical facilities in Nyandarua and Nyeri counties has given us valuable data to propose improvements for the new medical insurance scheme,” Mathenge said.
The two-day inspection included MPs Pauline Lenguris (Samburu County) and Mary Maingi (Mwea).
