Humanitarian medical organisation Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has urged the government to include analogue insulin pens in the Social Health Authority (SHA) benefits package, saying the move would significantly improve access to quality diabetes treatment for thousands of Kenyans.
The appeal comes as the Benefits Package and Tariffs Advisory Panel reviews proposals aimed at strengthening healthcare services under the country’s new health financing system.
According to MSF, adding analogue insulin pens to the SHA benefits package would make it easier for people living with diabetes to manage their condition by offering a treatment option that is simpler to use, provides more accurate dosing and helps patients maintain better control of their blood sugar levels.
The organisation states that diabetes still stands as one of the main health issues in Kenya that continues to rise each year. The organisation has projected that there were around 813,300 adult patients suffering from the disease in 2021; however, the figure may be even higher since more than half of all diabetes cases go unnoticed by doctors.
According to MSF, analogue insulin pens are becoming widely used among insulin delivery techniques in many rich nations due to convenience and efficiency in delivering a positive effect on patients. Yet, these devices are expensive and hard to obtain in low- and middle-income nations.
The proposal comes amid the ongoing controversies regarding the Social Health Authority in relation to its provision of access to healthcare services.
As part of ongoing reforms, SHA has also directed all contracted healthcare providers to implement accredited Health Management Information Systems (HMIS) that are integrated with its central digital platform ahead of the 2026–2028 contracting cycle.
MSF argues that Kenya has already laid the groundwork for wider adoption of analogue insulin pens after the devices were recently included in the World Health Organisation’s Model List of Essential Medicines, Kenya’s Essential Medicines List and the National Clinical Guidelines on the Management of Diabetes.
“By introducing analogue insulin pens to its Social Health Authority benefits package, Kenya would be leading the charge towards upending the global double standard in diabetes care and ensuring that people with diabetes have more equitable access to care,” said Dr Elizabeth Jarman, MSF Access Noncommunicable Disease Technical Advisor.
The organisation also raised concerns about the future of nearly 8,000 children currently receiving analogue insulin pens through the Changing Diabetes in Children programme.
According to MSF, many of these children risk losing access to the treatment once they graduate from the programme if the devices are not covered under SHA.
The organisation says expanding the benefits package would help ensure patients continue receiving the treatment they need while giving healthcare workers greater flexibility to prescribe the most suitable insulin delivery option based on each patient’s medical needs.
MSF currently supports diabetes care programmes in Homa Bay County and at Dagahaley Refugee Camp, where it is also conducting research on the effectiveness and practicality of using analogue insulin pens in humanitarian settings.