Kenyans struggling to pay hospital bills for their loved ones received a major boost on Wednesday after parliament passed a bill which will scrap off such debts upon someone's death.
Throughout the counties, impoverished families hold fundraisers to offset bills for their loved ones who die while receiving treatment and at times, many stay in morgues for lack of money.
Nyali MP Mohammed Ali sponsored the bill which received overwhelming support from a section of MPs, a move that could compel the government to pay more.
"Mr Speaker, we can't allocate billions to things like a referendum that does not matter at the expense of health services. I am talking on behalf of the poor who lose their loved ones and struggle to bury them. This bill will help settle such matters," said Ali.
Ainabkoi MP William Chepkut, a former aide to once powerful minister Nicholas Biwot, took to his Twitter to praise the bill which comes as a relief to many Kenyans.
"We have approved the bill by Nyali MP Moha JichoPevu , to scrap hospital bill(s) upon patient's death," he said.
Even in public hospitals, upon the patient's death, bodies are detained until treatment and morgue fee are cleared by the affected families, something that brings about many fundraisers across the nation.
In some scenarios, some families are forced to abandon the bodies in the morgue, and at times hospital managements are forced to dispose the bodies after several months.
But the bill has to wait for an assent from President Uhuru Kenyatta before it's fully implemented across all public hospitals in the country.
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