On Wednesday, June 12, Timothy Olweny, the CEO of the Social Health Authority (SHA), disclosed that the agency had not yet hired any personnel.
As a result, he revealed that by November 2024, every National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) member will reapply for employment.
He stated that there was no guarantee that SHA, the organization replacing NHIF, would fully absorb the more than 1,800 employees.
“But everyone will have to apply for their jobs, and we will recruit afresh,” Olweny said in an interview with Spice FM. “We currently employ staff who previously worked for NHIF.”
“Come November, for example, when the law sets the NHIF’s sunset; by that time, we expect to have hired our new employees.”
The CEO announced that SHA will hire current NHIF employees under temporary contractual terms before the recruitment drive concludes.
He clarified why the authority had not yet employed new employees, saying that they had been working to legalise SHA first in view of the fact that SHA will start operations on July 1.
He mentioned that the formulation of the bill and the parliamentary process greatly consumed the time of the SHA board members.
Despite the challenges in recruiting, Olweny stated that the authority had the legal right to hire departing NHIF employees.
He stated, “By operation of law, SHA owns everything from NHIF as of November 2, whether it is assets or liabilities.”
While advancing the SHA Bill through parliament, the National Assembly Majority Leader first declared that NHIF employees would have a year to reapply for their positions.
Ichung’wah had sent out a warning and pledged to take back only the devoted employees who had no instances of corruption. The Kikuyu MP explained the action as a means of guaranteeing that SHA hires only the top candidates from NHIF.