Kenya introduces SMS system to verify hospitals’ healthcare services before SHA sends money
Patients leaving public hospitals without prescribed medicines could soon become harder for healthcare facilities to overlook as Kenya turns to digital technology to strengthen accountability in the delivery of medical services. The government has introduced a system that sends patients text messages asking them to confirm whether they received prescribed medicines, with the Social Health […]
Kenya has launched a new SMS system to verify hospitals' healthcare services before the Social Health Authority (SHA) disburses funds, aiming to strengthen accountability in the delivery of medical services. The system, which began on November 1, 2026, sends patients text messages asking them to confirm whether they received prescribed medicines, with the SHA withholding payment for drugs hospitals claim to have dispensed but patients did not receive.
Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale announced the initiative during the inaugural Africa Health Data Forum in Nairobi on November 10, 2026, stating that the objective is to address concerns about medicine availability in public hospitals, where patients have reported being forced to purchase prescribed drugs from private pharmacies after receiving treatment.
Brief written by urgent.news from People Daily Kenya's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
