The Ministry of Education directive on compulsory registration under the Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) scheme has been halted.
Justice Jairus Ngaah of the High Court on Thursday, September 19, directed the suspension of a Ministry of Education order requiring mandatory registration of learners.
The registration has been halted pending the determination of a case filed by the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) at the High Court.
This follows a directive issued by the Ministry of Education on August 16 to all parents and schools to ensure that all students are registered under the Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF).
The matter was to be handled as urgent with a deadline of August 26.
Also Read: Health CS in Pains to Explain Safaricom’s Role in SHIF
Details of the LSK Petition
Justice Jairus Ngaah certified the application filed by LSK as urgent, which argues that the decision of the government to compel parents and guardians to register their children is illegal.
Additionally, the court was also informed that the directive infringes on the rights of minors in public schools to access basic education.
LSK argued that using compulsory registration as dependents of their parents under a law that does not exist was illegal.
They referenced a High Court ruling from July, which deemed the Social Health Insurance Act, along with other parliamentary acts, unconstitutional.
Also Read: Parents Directed to Urgently Register Students Under SHIF
Ministry’s Earlier Directive to Parents
In the August directive issued by Education Principal Secretary Dr Belio Kipsang, all Regional and County Directors of Education were informed that the Edu Afya package will be offered under SHIF.
Consequently, school going children would be registered as dependents of their parents.
The registration was done through sha.go.ke, the USSD code *147#, or afyangu.go.ke.
“Section 26 of the Social Health Insurance Act provides that every Kenyan, including children, shall register as a member of the Social Health Insurance Fund.
“Therefore, the Ministry of Health, State Department for Medical Services through the Social Health Authority has developed an enhanced benefit package for Edu Afya to be covered under the Social Health Insurance Fund,” the letter read in part.
The previous Edu Afya medical scheme for students was stopped in 2023.
However, the Ministry of Health has indicated that it has allocated Ksh4.6 billion to the program, reintroducing it under SHIF
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