Kenya’s Social Health Authority (SHA) is moving to a new digital system that will change how hospitals verify patients, submit claims and exchange health information with the national health financing system. The transition from the existing SHA Provider Portal to an integrated Health Management Information System (HMIS) is part of the government’s wider digital-health transformation under Taifa Care. As of September 30, 2026, healthcare facilities are expected to complete the migration, with facilities that fail to comply potentially losing access to SHA-funded services and claims processing. 

The new system is intended to make healthcare transactions more electronic, reduce paperwork and improve the visibility of services provided to SHA beneficiaries. It will connect compliant hospital information systems with the national digital health infrastructure, allowing patient verification, claims submission and health-information exchange to take place electronically.

What is the new SHA digital system?

The system is commonly referred to as the SHA Health Management Information System (SHA HMIS). It is being introduced as the SHA Provider Portal is gradually phased out.

According to the Ministry of Health, the new platform is designed to support real-time patient verification, electronic claims management, digital authentication of healthcare providers and secure exchange of health information between healthcare facilities and the national digital health ecosystem. 

Rather than requiring hospitals to rely on a standalone SHA portal, the new approach requires healthcare providers to operate approved HMIS platforms that can communicate with SHA and the national health information infrastructure.

The system is therefore not simply a new website for hospitals. It forms part of a broader attempt to connect patients, healthcare providers, health regulators and the health-financing system through interoperable digital platforms.

September 30 deadline

The transition has reached an important stage.

On September 29, 2026, Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale directed contracted healthcare facilities to complete migration to the new HMIS by September 30. He said the existing SHA Provider Portal would be closed at midnight on September 30, meaning facilities that had not migrated risked being locked out of SHA transactions. 

The deadline follows an earlier extension granted by SHA. In September, the Authority moved the compliance deadline from September 1 to September 30 to give facilities additional time to complete system configuration and other technical requirements. 

Healthcare providers have been required to use HMIS platforms certified by the Digital Health Agency and capable of connecting to the national Health Information Exchange.

How the system will work

Under the new arrangement, a patient visiting a healthcare facility will have their eligibility and identity verified electronically. The facility's approved HMIS will communicate with the relevant national systems, reducing the need for separate manual verification procedures.

Once treatment is provided, the facility will also be able to submit its claim electronically.

This is important because claims processing has been one of the major areas of concern in Kenya's health-financing reforms. The government expects digital claims to provide better information about services delivered and allow SHA to process and assess claims more efficiently.

The Ministry of Health says the system will also improve accountability by creating better electronic records of healthcare transactions. 

Why SHA is introducing the system

One of the main reasons for the transition is to create a more integrated health system.

The Ministry says a digital connection between healthcare providers and health financing will improve efficiency, transparency and accountability. The system is also expected to reduce delays in processing claims and strengthen the detection of fraud, waste and abuse. 

The government is also pursuing a wider digital-health programme involving the Digital Health Agency, SHA and other institutions.

The Digital Health Agency's digital-health architecture includes patient services, health information exchange, health analytics, claims management, public health reporting and other components designed to allow different parts of Kenya's health system to communicate electronically. 

This means the SHA HMIS transition is part of a much larger digital transformation rather than an isolated change affecting hospitals.

Benefits for patients

For patients, one of the expected benefits is faster verification when accessing services.

If the systems work as intended, healthcare providers should be able to verify a patient's SHA status electronically rather than depending heavily on paperwork or separate manual processes.

The digital system could also improve continuity of information because relevant patient and service information can be exchanged electronically between connected systems, subject to applicable privacy and access controls.

Another potential benefit is greater transparency. Electronic records can make it easier to establish which services were provided, when they were provided and what was subsequently submitted as a claim.

This can help strengthen oversight of public healthcare financing.

Benefits for hospitals

Healthcare facilities are also expected to benefit from the transition.

Electronic claims submission can reduce paperwork and administrative processes associated with preparing and submitting claims. The Ministry of Health has said the new system is expected to accelerate reimbursement and improve accountability. 

For hospitals, however, the transition also means investment in technology, internet connectivity, trained personnel and compatible hospital-management software.

Facilities are required to have certified HMIS platforms and to complete the relevant registration and certification processes. They must also maintain appropriate data security, backup and recovery arrangements. 

Thousands of facilities already involved

The scale of the transition is significant.

The Ministry of Health reported in June that 11,034 healthcare facilities had been accredited by SHA. It also said that 6,228 public facilities, representing 93 per cent of public health facilities at the time, had undergone digital transformation, while 5,078 facilities were already operating on SHA HMIS and 2,978 were actively submitting claims electronically. 

More recent government figures cited by Duale indicate that county and public hospitals at levels two, three and four had already migrated, while private and faith-based facilities were expected to complete the transition. 

The Ministry has therefore been implementing the change progressively rather than switching the entire health sector overnight.

What happens to the old SHA Provider Portal?

The existing Provider Portal is being phased out.

The government wants healthcare facilities to move away from the previous system and instead use certified HMIS platforms connected to the national digital-health infrastructure.

This is intended to create a more unified system in which patient verification, claims management and health information exchange can happen through interconnected digital platforms.

The transition is also expected to reduce duplication, since hospitals will increasingly use their own approved management systems while maintaining electronic connections with SHA and other components of the national health-information system.

Data protection and patient privacy

The digitisation of health services also raises important questions about the protection of medical information.

Healthcare data is highly sensitive, and the new system therefore requires facilities to implement security measures to protect patient information. Requirements include controlled access to health records, monitoring of access, data backup and recovery arrangements, and secure electronic communication. 

The Ministry has previously stated that Kenya's national health-information exchange is designed to safeguard patient data and operate within the country's data-protection framework. 

For patients, this means that the success of the digital system will depend not only on speed and efficiency but also on how securely personal and medical information is handled.

Challenges facing the transition

Despite the expected benefits, moving thousands of healthcare facilities onto a common digital framework is a major undertaking.

Some facilities may face challenges involving internet connectivity, hardware, software configuration, staff training and technical support.

SHA recognised such challenges when it extended the compliance deadline to September 30. Facilities experiencing technical problems were advised to seek assistance from the Digital Health Agency's technical-support team. 

Private and faith-based facilities may also face additional costs associated with upgrading their systems to meet certification and interoperability requirements.

There are also concerns about what happens when technology fails. Healthcare facilities need reliable backup arrangements because patients cannot simply stop receiving services because of an internet outage or technical problem.

A major change for Kenya's health sector

The SHA HMIS transition represents a significant change in how Kenya intends to manage healthcare financing and health information.

The government is seeking to move toward a paperless and interconnected health system, where patients can be verified digitally, healthcare services can be recorded electronically and claims can be submitted and processed through integrated systems.

The Ministry of Health has described the transition as an important part of Taifa Care and Universal Health Coverage. 

The immediate focus, however, is the September 30, 2026 deadline. Healthcare facilities contracted by SHA are expected to complete the required integration so that they can continue participating in the SHA-funded healthcare system.

If successfully implemented, the new digital system could give SHA better information about healthcare utilisation, improve claims processing and strengthen monitoring of health-financing transactions. At the same time, its effectiveness will depend on reliable technology, adequate training, strong data protection and the ability of healthcare facilities across Kenya to maintain functional digital systems.