Kenya, Aug. 24 -- In 2025, Kenya's Social Health Authority (SHA) is embroiled in a SHA fraud scandal, with millions of shillings paid to non-existent ghost hospitals in regions like Homa Bay and Mandera, prompting widespread public fury and calls for accountability.
Investigations have revealed that funds earmarked for universal health coverage were diverted through fraudulent claims, leaving legitimate facilities underfunded and patients suffering from inadequate services. Amid the uproar, SHA officials have denied systemic wrongdoing, vowing to crack down on corruption while suspending dozens of implicated hospitals.
The SHA fraud scandal ghost hospitals list, compiled from official gazettes and audits, highlights facilities causing backlash online, including abandoned structures like Nyandiwa Dispensary in Homa Bay and questionable setups in Mandera, fueling debates on social media platforms like X, where users decry the misuse of public resources intended for healthcare improvement.
The SHA fraud scandal began unfolding earlier in the year, with reports surfacing about irregular payments to facilities that exist only on paper or operate far below required standards.
In Homa Bay, for instance, Nyandiwa Dispensary, a dilapidated structure overgrown with weeds and unused for over a decade, received Sh20 million in August 2025, plus an additional Sh10,080, despite lacking operational capacity.
Local residents expressed shock on social media, sharing photos of the site resembling a thicket rather than a hospital, with comments highlighting how patients must travel long distances for care, exacerbating suffering in underserved areas.
Similar suspect deals in the region saw funds for Masogo Health Centre redirected to Siaya, and Gongo Health Centre missing allocations entirely, pointing to intentional mix-ups in SHA's disbursement system.
In Mandera, the scandal involves multiple facilities flagged for collusion and duplicate claims, creating ghost patients to inflate payouts. Audits uncovered practices like upcoding procedures, falsifying records, and converting outpatient visits into inpatient bills, draining resources from the 104 billion Ksh SHA budget designed to replace the corruption-riddled National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF).
Public fury has been amplified online, with X users tagging SHA officials and demanding transparency, as these diversions leave real hospitals struggling with unpaid claims and shortages of essential supplies like sterile equipment and oxygen.
To address the growing outcry, Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale announced the suspension of 40 health facilities on August 8, 2025, following investigations by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI).
The SHA fraud scandal ghost hospitals list includes a mix of private and purported public entities across counties, many causing backlash for their role in siphoning funds. Below is the comprehensive list extracted from official sources, focusing on those in Homa Bay, Mandera, and other regions implicated in the fraud:
This SHA fraud scandal ghost hospitals list represents a fraction of the broader issues, with facilities exploiting loopholes in SHA's digital system, which critics like the Rural and Urban Hospitals Association of Kenya (RUPHA) describe as ineffective for detecting fraud.
In regions like Mandera, hospitals such as Al-Masry Nursing Home and Rhamu Dimu Medical Centre have been accused of creating ghost patients through shared codes and forced admissions, diverting funds that could support universal health coverage for vulnerable populations.
SHA CEO Dr. Mercy Mwangangi has defended the authority's processes, insisting on rigorous verification and publishing disbursements online for transparency, yet opacity around losses continues to stoke distrust.
Officials vow criminal prosecutions and license revocations, with biometric verification rolled out in higher-level facilities to prevent OTP abuse, though extensions to lower levels are pending.
The SHA fraud scandal ghost hospitals list has amplified public fury, as underfunded real facilities reject up to 95% of claims without explanation, leading to service cuts and patient hardships in rural areas.
Investigations into the SHA fraud scandal ghost hospitals list reveal violations of constitutional rights to health, with arbitrary rejections undermining fair administrative action and leaving patients in places like Homa Bay and Mandera without essential care.
As public fury escalates, the SHA fraud scandal ghost hospitals list serves as a call for reforms, demanding enhanced oversight to ensure funds reach genuine providers rather than phantom entities.
Ultimately, the SHA fraud scandal ghost hospitals list exposes critical flaws in Kenya's push for universal health coverage, with diverted millions highlighting the need for accountability to rebuild trust amid ongoing corruption crackdowns.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Bana Kenya.