Designed to enforce the constitutional right to emergency medical treatment and preserve human dignity, the proposed legislation targets two widespread practices in the public healthcare sector: demanding upfront deposits before administering emergency care, and detaining discharged patients or bodies of deceased relatives over unpaid medical bills.
Under the proposed law, public health facilities will be legally barred from requiring prepayment or proof of financial ability before stabilizing critically ill or injured patients.
Public institutions that turn away emergency cases or delay urgent treatment over admission deposits risk fines of up to KSh 3 million.
Furthermore, the Bill outlaws the detention of recovered patients in wards and prohibits public hospitals and mortuaries from holding bodies hostage to compel families to settle outstanding bills.
Public officers who authorize or facilitate the detention of a body over unpaid fees face personal fines of up to KSh 2 million.
However, legal analysts and lawmakers emphasize two critical caveats for citizens. First, the Bill does not cancel or waive accrued medical debts; public hospitals retain the right to recover unpaid balances through lawful civil channels rather than physical detention.
Second, following parliamentary adjustments, the strict prohibitions apply specifically to public healthcare facilities rather than serving as a blanket ban across private hospitals and private mortuaries.
Inspired by distressing real-life cases—including families unable to bury loved ones for months over million-shilling bills—the Bill aims to ensure life-saving care and dignified burials are never held hostage by poverty.
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https://peopledaily.digital/inside-politics/what-njeri-mainas-health-amendment-bill-means-for-ordinary-kenyans
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