Vihiga County, located in western Kenya, is the first of the country’s 47 counties to enroll all of its employees into the Public Officers Medical Scheme Fund (POMS) under the Social Health Authority (SHA).
According to the Vihiga county government, “This agreement will see more than 3,032 county employees access comprehensive medical cover beginning October 1, 2025.”
Francis Wayne Matika, Director of the Governor’s Press Service, told Techweez that the county initiated this collaboration, stating, “Vihiga sought out SHA for the scheme and was obliged after 1 year of engagement.”
Mr Matika also confirmed that the county government is following up on the partnership by working to improve services at all health facilities over the next three months.
The goal is to ensure that staff and the public can access comprehensive healthcare within Vihiga first, before seeking services outside the county. It is also an initiative to ensure that all Vihiga County employees and their families have access to healthcare coverage countrywide.
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“POMS will mean that all our staff and their families can access all health services from anywhere in the country without any out-of-pocket payments. Previously, under NHIF, only National Government staff could access the scheme.” Mr Watika told Techweez.
Notably, county staff and their families can only access services from facilities accredited by the Social Health Authority.
During the event, the County Government of Vihiga hosted the Ministry of Health and also activated the SHA Taifa Care program that will see the government support registration of indigent cases and the vulnerable in the society.
According to the Ministry of Health, Taifa Care now covers 24 million Kenyans.
Governor Dr Wilber Ottichilo led a tour of the Vihiga County Teaching and Referral Hospital for CS Aden Duale and members of the Social Health Authority (SHA). Additionally, digital devices were provided to enhance health service delivery.
