Cancer patients face financial strain as they await Ruto’s improved SHA benefits package

The President announced an improved package last week, raising hopes for hundreds of patients, some of whom are on the verge of life-changing procedures.

Joseph Muteru, a resident of Kipkaren, Eldoret, is a man living on borrowed time. He suffers from prostate cancer that has gone untreated for months now due to the exhaustion of his SHA cover.

“I was told to pay SHA for the entire year. Another person paid for me, I started treatment, went for four months, and then I was told SHA had exhausted the funds,” Muteru said.

Muteru has been battling the disease since 2023, the burden of this ailment nearly bringing his family to its knees. Efforts to treat it have been hampered time and again, and now, in just one week, he could lose his manhood, quite literally.

“The doctor told me the limit has been reached and I need to pay Ksh.100,000 in cash. These drugs are expensive and it is difficult to raise the money,” he added.

Dr Beck Omollo explained, “We really tried but it was impossible. The drugs were unavailable because SHA could not pay. He had to undergo removal of his testicles to control the testosterone hormone that makes him a man.”

It is a reality that even his wife now seems resigned to.

Caroline Achieng is also facing similar challenges. The businesswoman is a cervical cancer patient. Like Muteru, every day she faces the pain of her ailment and the financial constraints that have made her mere existence a struggle.

She had been dependent on SHA for her treatment, but her cover for cancer has been exhausted for the year, leaving her in a precarious, painful, and dangerous situation.

“Kidonda inaniumiza na inaniuma huku chini. Naweka flagil kwenye chupa ya tomato sauce, halafu nafinya huko chini ndio nisikie uchungu. Mimi siombi hata chakula, naomba diapers na dawa, hapo sasa naweza fanya shughuli zangu,” Caroline said.

Dr Beckie noted, “The situation on the ground is very different from what people understand in offices. Many patients in rural areas cannot access the drugs prescribed by the doctor. When they run out, they go home and wait until the year ends before SHA pays again.”

She is among hundreds of patients in this county and across the country who battle with the financial implications of treating cancer, especially under SHA. Just last week, the President announced the increase in the cancer treatment benefit package under SHA.

“SHA will enhance the cancer benefits package from the current Ksh.550,000 to Ksh.800,000, effective December 1, 2025. This enhancement responds to the rising cost of sustained cancer care and ensures that patients can access quality, uninterrupted treatment without facing financial hardship,” President Ruto said.

Patients like Muteru and Caroline will be waiting for December 1 with bated breath, hoping that this increase in the benefits package will come soon enough to save Muteru’s manhood, restore some dignity, provide relief for Caroline, and enable her to pick up the pieces of her crumbling life.