Kenya’s teachers are facing a financial storm this December as a new medical scheme strips their allowances while demanding fresh deductions, a move critics are calling a "double tax" on the nation's educators.

Effective December 1, 2025, over 400,000 teachers under the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) saw their medical allowances vanish. In their place is the Public Officers Medical Scheme Fund (POMSF), a shift that former Public Service Regulatory Authority (PSRA) Director-General Fazul Mahamed argues leaves educators paying twice for shrinking healthcare access.

The Mechanics of the Squeeze

The controversy centers on a radical restructuring of how teachers access health services. Previously, medical allowances were embedded in salaries or pooled to fund private insurance consortiums. Under the new regime administered through the Social Health Authority (SHA), that safety net has been removed.

Teachers are now required to pay out-of-pocket “fees for service” under POMSF. However, this new burden does not replace the statutory deductions; it sits on top of them. Teachers continue to see SHA deductions sliced from their payslips, creating a scenario where they are funding a national pot while simultaneously losing the specific buffer that shielded them from direct hospital bills.

Mahamed decried the move as a procedural ambush, noting that the transition was executed without:

• Adequate consultation with teachers’ unions.
• Robust public participation.
• Safeguards for teachers' financial welfare.

A History of Contention

For years, the medical allowance was a distinct perk for Kenyan educators. While the previous system—where funds were redirected to private insurers—drew criticism for gaps in specialized care and facility access in remote regions, it offered a dual layer of protection. Teachers benefited from their statutory NHIF contributions and the private insurance procured by the TSC.

Now, that duality has collapsed into what observers call a financial exposure. By scrapping the allowance and introducing a fee-for-service model alongside mandatory deductions, the government has effectively increased the cost of living for teachers during a challenging economic climate.

As the holiday season approaches, the removal of this financial cushion threatens to turn a festive period into a season of anxiety for the workforce responsible for Kenya’s future, with unions likely to ramp up pressure on the TSC to revisit the terms of engagement.