Teacher Unions have expressed concerns about potential delays in the transition of teachers from the current Minet medical cover to the Social Health Authority (SHA), as proposed by the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) due to time constraint.
Officials from the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) and the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) in the Western region have pointed out that the TSC may not meet the December 1, 2025 deadline for this transition.
The unionists fear that if the TSC fails to move teachers from Minet to SHA within the stipulated timeframe, teachers could be left in a state of confusion.
The commission recently announced plans to transfer all teachers in the Public Officers Medical Fund to SHA by December 1, as the current medical insurance cover, provided by Minet Kenya, is set to expire at the end of November.
Charles Otiende, KUPPET Vihiga County Executive Secretary aspirant and Cyprian Chibile, KNUT Mumias branch Executive Secretary are now advocating for the TSC to extend the transfer deadline by six months to provide sufficient time for both the teachers and the Commission to prepare adequately for the transition.
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“December is fast approaching, yet teachers are unaware of the next steps due to a lack of communication from the TSC,” said Otiende.
KUPPET believes that the time remaining before December 1 is too short; if TSC decides to shift teachers, it could negatively impact their health needs.
The union is calling for an inclusive medical plan to ensure that the new scheme provides comprehensive coverage that meets teachers’ needs. Otiende expressed his worries about the short timeline, fearing it could result in a loss of benefits and lead to a crisis for educators.
“It would be unrealistic for the TSC to move teachers from Minet to SHA between now and December. Many gaps need to be addressed before implementation. In fact, we want to clarify the benefits for each of our members based on their job groups,” he added.
The TSC had previously indicated delays in the transition to the new health scheme due to funding gaps, inadequate capacity, and disagreements between the Commission and SHA.
According to the commission, it requires Ksh37 billion to facilitate the transition of teachers to SHA, but the government has allocated only Ksh20 billion, resulting in a shortfall of Ksh17 billion.
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Chibile further emphasized that now is not the right time to transition teachers from Minet to SHA. He added that KNUT has raised concerns about SHA’s preparedness, arguing that there are significant unpaid claims from Minet that SHA needs to address.
“We are still hesitant to enroll with SHA because private hospitals, which provide the best medical services, have stopped treating patients with SHA medical covers,” said Chibile. “We cannot subject our teachers to SHA when it fails to remit payments to private hospitals. We will not allow our teachers to suffer,” he added.
Furthermore, the lack of infrastructure by SHA at the grassroots level poses another issue for KNUT officials, who are questioning where teachers will lodge complaints if they encounter challenges with the new medical scheme.
As a temporary measure, the unions are proposing that teachers be provided with their medical cover funds directly on their payslips, allowing them to seek health services from providers of their choice.
“This would enable teachers to visit hospitals of their choice and pay cash,” concluded Chibile.
By Victor Ngecho
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