The Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH) has released all teen mothers who were still in the hospital over pending bills and Social Health Authority (SHA) registration.
MTRH freed the women after several media houses, including Daily Nation, Citizen TV, and TikTok videos, alleged that the new mothers were detained at the hospital due to pending SHA registration or unpaid premiums, an allegation that the hospital had earlier denied.
In a statement on Sunday, September 22, the hospital confirmed that the new mothers have been discharged. The hospital claims that the mothers were in the process of being discharged, even when the reports surfaced.
According to the hospital, the Hospital Credit and Evaluation Committee also reviewed and cleared mothers who were unable to present the necessary documentation for SHA registration.
"Those who were unable to present the requisite documentation for Social Health Authority (SHA) registration—such as national identification cards or birth certificates—had their cases reviewed and appropriately cleared by the Hospital Credit and Evaluation Committee," the hospital said.
According to reports from the Daily Nation released on September 18, the hospital was overcrowded, patients were sharing beds and were being served poor meals, and new mothers were unable to leave the hospitals due to pending SHA registration or unpaid premiums.
In response, MTRH CEO Philip Kirwa refuted claims that the patients were unlawfully detained in the hospital, assuring that they were receiving the necessary medical care.
According to Kirwa, teenage mothers who lacked the requisite documents, such as IDs, were issued temporary identification documents to enable them to register with SHA and avert discharge delays.
“Congestion may occur when patients have not completed SHA enrolment, but we continue to work closely with the Ministry of Health to ease the process,” the CEO clarified in a statement on Friday, August 19.
The hospital further clarified that patients were not served leftovers, stressing that all meals, supplies, and services met the necessary quality standards.
However, Kirwa acknowledged that the hospital occasionally takes in patients who could be treated at lower-level facilities, putting extra pressure on hospital spaces and resources.
The claims come as hospitals and the government clash over unpaid bills. On Sunday, the Rural & Urban Private Hospitals Association of Kenya (RUPHA) instructed all private hospitals nationwide to start requiring cash payments from patients covered by SHA, effective from Monday, 22 September.
RUPHA stated that the move was prompted by delayed and unsettled payments from SHA, which it said had made it unsustainable for hospitals to continue offering services on credit.
“Effective today, all healthcare services (unless otherwise stated) at this facility for Social Health Authority (SHA) beneficiaries will be provided on a cash basis,” the notice stated.
