Kenya's Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale has announced the closure of approximately 1,400 private health facilities due to fraudulent activities related to the Social Health Authority (SHA) Fund. The government identified malpractice including converting outpatient claims to inpatient claims and inflated billing, with some facilities falsely claiming to perform more surgeries than the Kenyatta National Hospital. President William Ruto confirmed that around 1,000 hospitals have been shut down for falsifying SHA medical claims, a scheme that serves about 4.9 million people. Duale emphasized that health facilities must refund money obtained through false claims and warned that licenses of defrauding institutions will be canceled regardless of ownership, including facilities owned by sitting Members of Parliament. The Health Ministry has urged the public to report suspicious activities via a toll-free number and reiterated that primary healthcare services under SHA should be free and that patients should not be charged at registered facilities. Additionally, Duale directed that SHA payments be based strictly on hospitals’ bed capacity to prevent further fraud. The government has allocated KSh 13 billion to ensure access to treatment at public facilities. Private hospitals have criticized the closures, but Duale defended the reforms as necessary to uphold the integrity of the national health insurance system and improve healthcare delivery in Kenya.