The government has rolled out biometric registration under the Social Health Authority (SHA) to improve how patients are identified and make healthcare access more efficient across the country.
While launching the initiative at Kenyatta University Teaching, Referral and Research Hospital, Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale confirmed that biometric registration is now fully in use at all Level 4, 5, and 6 hospitals nationwide.
“Effective immediately, SHA will stop using OTP-based authorisation,” Duale announced.
“From now on, all approvals must be done through biometric health IDs or the Practice 360 App,” he added.
CS Duale revealed that the Ministry of Health is currently onboarding Level 2 and 3 health facilities onto the SHA system, as part of a wider push to digitize healthcare services starting at the grassroots level.
To support this rollout, the government has introduced the Practice 360 App, a geo-tagged and geo-fenced platform designed to fight fraud and prevent doctors from sharing authorisation codes improperly.
“This tool will help us stop the unauthorised sharing of pre-authorisation codes by medical practitioners,” said Duale. “With the Practice 360 App, healthcare workers can now view, approve, and manage pre-authorisation claims and the services they provide, all from one place.”
Since its launch, the Social Health Authority (SHA) has onboarded over 25.1 million Kenyans and nearly 10,000 hospitals, clinics, and health centres.
Through the Social Health Insurance Fund, the Authority has already reimbursed Ksh47.5 billion, with another Ksh6.9 billion disbursed via the Primary Healthcare Fund.
Duale noted that Kenyatta University Teaching and Referral Hospital has submitted claims worth Ksh1.4 billion and received over Ksh1 billion in payments.
“That tells you our facilities, whether public, private, or faith-based, are seeing real value from the investments they’ve made in healthcare,” he said.
How to Sign Up
For convenience of access to everyone, SHA biometric registration is now available through a variety of convenient channels.
Kenyans can register by dialling *147# on their mobile phones, logging onto the official SHA website, or taking part in ongoing physical registration drives across the country. The new system introduces biometric data, including fingerprints and facial recognition, to identify individuals securely and streamline healthcare services.
“We are not just automating processes. We are building a system that protects patients and safeguards public funds,” said Duale.
“No more paper records. No more fake claims. No more double-billing. Every shilling contributed by Kenyans must work for Kenyans,” Duale declared.
Alongside the Biometric Health ID (BHI) and the Practise360 App, CS Duale also announced two other digital innovations – the National Product Catalogue and the Health Information Exchange (HIE).
The National Product Catalogue blocks fake drugs by ensuring only verified medicines are used, while the HIE allows secure sharing of patient data across facilities and counties.
“The Ministry will launch a pharmaceutical Track-and-Trace system next month and enhance digital oversight through KMPDC to weed out fraudulent facilities under Taifa Care,” Duale added.
“These digital tools mark a new era of efficient, transparent and patient-focused healthcare delivery.”
