Starting today, the Social Health Authority (SHA) will no longer accept OTP-based authorisations for healthcare services, Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale has announced.
In a statement on Monday, Duale said all approvals will now be processed either through the biometric health ID system or via the newly launched Practice 360 app. He confirmed that biometric registration is currently available at all Level 4, 5, and 6 public health facilities across the country.
“No patient will need to present physical documents to access care under SHA. Healthcare workers will retrieve patient details using biometric data,” Duale stated.
The CS said the shift to biometric and app-based systems is part of wider efforts to eliminate fraud and enhance efficiency within the country’s healthcare insurance programme.
Duale made the announcement at Kenyatta University Teaching, Referral and Research Hospital (KUTRRH) during the official launch of the national biometric verification system on Monday, August 4.
“As of now, biometric registration is live in all Level 4, 5 and 6 facilities. We are working to onboard Level 3 and 2 facilities across the country,” he said.
He also launched the Practice 360 app, which enables healthcare professionals to approve and manage service claims and authorisations directly from their devices.
“All healthcare workers now have an opportunity to view, approve, and manage pre-authorisations, claims, and services offered through the app, which is geo-tagged to their assigned facilities,” he added.
As part of the digital health transformation, Duale also unveiled the National Product Catalogue and the Health Information Exchange (HIE). The product catalogue aims to curb the circulation of counterfeit drugs, while the HIE allows for secure sharing of patient data across facilities.
According to Duale, these systems are designed to streamline services and reduce reliance on paperwork, which often delays care.
“This biometric system will help us eliminate fraud and misuse of benefits. It will also reduce paperwork, shorten patient queues, and allow more time for actual patient care,” he said.
“This digital superhighway forms the backbone of a transparent, efficient, and patient-centred health system,” he added.
Duale disclosed that over 25 million Kenyans have already enrolled under the SHA programme, with more than 10,000 private, public, and faith-based facilities contracted to provide services.
He further warned that SHA will no longer reimburse healthcare providers for medicines that are not actually dispensed to patients. Pharmaceutical companies that fail to upload certified product data to the system within 30 days risk deregistration, he said.
