Court Frees 8 Roped In Ksh7 Million SHA Fraud Scheme
Court filings reveal the charges relate to two separate fraud schemes linked to health institutions in Kilifi and Vihiga counties.
Viral Tea Ke Writer 
Eight people and a medical facility have been arraigned for allegedly defrauding the Social Health Authority (SHA) of more than Ksh7 million, as the government intensifies its crackdown on corruption in the health sector.
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) charged the accused with multiple offenses — including conspiracy to commit a felony, forgery, falsification of records, obtaining proceeds of crime, cheating, and uttering false documents.
Court filings reveal the charges relate to two separate fraud schemes linked to health institutions in Kilifi and Vihiga counties.
Photo of a legal scale and a gavel in Kenya. /LAWBHOOMI
In one case, directors and employees of a private clinic in Mtwapa, Kilifi County, are accused of fabricating medical data between November 1, 2024, and June 30, 2025.
The ODPP alleges that the falsified records resulted in irregular disbursements from the Social Health Authority amounting to Ksh2 million.
In a separate case, an employee at a health facility in Vihiga County is accused of swindling the authority out of more than Ksh5.1 million during the same period.
The suspects appeared before Chief Magistrate Lucas Onyina at the Milimani Law Courts, where they all pleaded not guilty. They were each granted a bond of Ksh600,000 as the case proceeds.
On September 1, 2025, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) received 1,188 case files from the Social Health Authority (SHA) and the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Council (KMPDC) after a surge of public complaints about rampant fraud in the health sector.
The files targeted individuals and institutions suspected of engaging in healthcare fraud, allegedly attempting to sabotage government efforts to deliver affordable and quality healthcare to citizens.
According to Health CS Aden Duale, the SHA cases were classified into three groups: 24 facilities where fraud was confirmed, 61 with ongoing investigations, and 105 that had been closed by KMPDC but still held SHA contracts.
Meanwhile, the 998 KMPDC files concerned health facilities found to be operating unlawfully.
In August, CS Duale highlighted that healthcare fraud is a growing global concern, accounting for up to 15 percent of health expenditures worldwide. Locally, data from the Association of Kenya Insurers (AKI) shows that nearly 30 percent of medical payouts in Kenya are linked to fraudulent claims.
A renewed government audit subsequently led to the closure of 728 non-compliant medical facilities and the downgrading of 301 others by KMPDC.
In June, SHA also suspended 40 facilities following forensic audits and announced plans to revoke the licenses of 45 more flagged for fraud.
