SHA 4 ALL- SHA KWA WOTE!

SHA 4 ALL- SHA KWA WOTE!

In 2023, Parliament passed a law requiring all Kenyans to access health services through the newly created Social Health Authority (SHA), which replaced NHIF. Even as the law signalled painful increases in mandatory deductions, MPs consistently promoted SHA as the best possible insurance scheme for ordinary Kenyans and for civil servants.

Yet on December 5th, the Parliamentary Service Commission quietly published an advertisement inviting private insurance companies to provide medical coverage for parliamentarians—despite repeatedly assuring the public that SHA already offers every service needed by citizens, including MPs and Senators.

So if SHA is truly as effective as they claim, why isn’t it good enough for them?
The very leaders responsible for strengthening Kenya’s public health system are insulated from its failures. With private insurance at their disposal—covering the most expensive treatments at the most exclusive hospitals—they have no real incentive to improve the public health services that the rest of us depend on. Why should taxpayers fund privileges for elected representatives that we ourselves cannot access?

If MPs and Senators continue to rely on private insurance, they will never experience the reality of the system they insist is “good enough” for Kenyans. That disconnect undermines accountability, public trust, and the constitutional principle of equality.

The Parliamentary Service Commission must ensure that SHA is the only publicly funded health insurance scheme for all members of Parliament. And MPs and Senators must demonstrate confidence in the system they require Kenyans to trust. SHA should not be for some of us—it should be for all of us.

Sign this petition to demand that the Parliamentary Service Commission halt its search for private insurers and require MPs and Senators to rely solely on SHA. This is a necessary step toward restoring equality, integrity, and trust in Kenya’s public health system.