Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale has warned all public hospitals across the country against admitting more patients than their approved bed capacity.
Appearing before the National Assembly Health Committee on Tuesday, Duale said hospitals must strictly follow their licensed bed numbers when admitting patients.
He directed that health facilities should no longer allow patients to share beds, describing the practice as both unsafe and unacceptable.
He further instructed the Social Health Authority (SHA) to vet hospital claims based on the approved number of beds. Any claims made for patients beyond the licensed capacity—especially those involving bed sharing—will be flagged as fraudulent.
“If facilities wish to admit more patients, they must invest in expanding their infrastructure,” said Duale.
“Bed sharing will now be treated as insurance fraud, and institutions found doing so will be held accountable.”
The move is part of ongoing reforms under the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) programme. The government says the aim is to improve service quality, enforce accountability, and ensure patients are treated with dignity and safety.
The session also brought together the Ministry of Health, the Council of Governors, and other stakeholders for a two-day retreat to discuss the implementation of UHC.
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