The Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Council (KMPDC) has issued new guidelines for health facilities seeking to appeal decisions related to their facility level classifications and bed capacity allocations.
In a notice released on Tuesday, August 5, KMPDC clarified that appeals stemming from the closure, partial closure, or downgrade of a health facility will only be considered 90 days after the change in status.
As a result, the council said health facilities are expected to operate strictly within their licensed scope to prevent disruptions and inconveniences to the broader health system.
"Appeals arising from the closure, partial closure, or downgrade of a health facility shall only be addressed 90 days after the change in status to allow the affected facilityto comprehensively address all identified gaps. In addition, such categorization changes have significant and cascading effects on the operations of other relevant government agencies.
"Health facilities are therefore expected to operate strictly within their licensed scope to avoid unnecessary disruptions and inconveniences to the broader health system," the statement read.
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In addition, KMPDC asked facilities seeking to revise their assigned bed capacities to submit formal written requests for inspection by Friday, August 8.
The council confirmed that a verification process is already underway to confirm facility statuses based on submitted requests.
"All applications are being processed in the order they were received. Once a request has been submitted, applicants are advised to exercise patience as their matter is scheduled and addressed," the notice added.
This comes a month after Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale directed public hospitals to end bed-sharing, calling it a violation of patient dignity and a loophole for insurance fraud.
Speaking before the National Assembly Health Committee on Tuesday, July 8, Duale announced that all public healthcare facilities will be required to admit patients strictly based on their licensed bed capacity.
He insisted that hospitals align admissions with approved infrastructure, and any claims outside those limits would be treated as fraudulent.
“If facilities wish to admit more patients, they must invest in expanding their infrastructure,” he stated.
Duale instructed the Social Health Authority (SHA) to enforce the new guidelines by vetting all insurance claims based solely on a hospital’s authorized bed count.
“Bed sharing will now be treated as insurance fraud,” he added, emphasizing that patients’ rights and dignity must be protected in line with national healthcare reforms.
