Education News: Teacher unions to meet TSC today over contentious SHA health cover

Teacher unions to meet Teachers Service Commission today over contentious Social Health Authority (SHA) health cover
Nairobi, Kenya — Senior officials from the major teacher unions are convening today with the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) to deliberate the planned migration of more than 400,000 educators and their dependants to the Social Health Authority (SHA) medical scheme effective December
 1.Key issues & demands
The unions — including the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT), Kenya Union of Post‑Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) and Kenya Union of Special Needs Education Teachers (KUSNET) — contend that the TSC has not sufficiently consulted them about the transition, and that critical details remain unclear.
Among their demands:
Full disclosure of capitation rates, benefit structure, hospital network, and authorisation/referral procedures under SHA.
Retention of or improvement upon the benefits currently under the existing scheme (managed by Minet Kenya), including outpatient/inpatient cover, maternity, dental, optical, ambulance services.
Assurance that teachers will not face increased out‑of‑pocket costs, reduced access to private facilities, or delays in service under the new scheme.
TSC & Government stance
The TSC acting CEO, Evaleen Mitei, has indicated that the transition aims to expand access: for example, SHA claims to have over 9,000 health facilities nationwide compared to roughly 800 under the previous scheme.
President William Ruto had earlier directed that the Ministry of Education, SHA and teacher unions work together to evaluate the medical cover for teachers, citing concerns that current costs and inpatient access for teachers were high.
Risks & implications
The expiry of the current Minet contract (reported to end November 30) puts pressure on the transition timeline — any misstep could leave teachers without full cover, or with gaps in service.
If teachers feel the transition undermines their welfare, it may lead to industrial action: the unions have threatened possible strike action if concerns are not addressed.
For the education sector: Disruption in teacher welfare can impact morale and the functioning of schools, especially ahead of major reforms and new school term rollouts.