The National Assembly voted to pass the Health (Amendment) Bill, 2024, a measure introduced by Kirinyaga County woman representative Njeri Maina.

The legislation criminalises the detention of patients and human remains over unpaid hospital bills and requires all medical facilities to provide emergency treatment without demanding pre‑payment.

Under the bill, any public hospital that asks for pre‑payment before treating an emergency case faces a fine of up to KSh 3 million, while public officers who authorize the withholding of bodies could be fined up to KSh 2 million.

Private hospitals, mortuaries and other health facilities would be similarly prohibited from holding patients or denying families access to deceased relatives on financial grounds.

To safeguard hospitals’ revenue, the bill creates a framework for legally binding instalment plans, allowing facilities to recover debts without resorting to detention or harassment.

The measure cleared the lower house with cross‑party support, after MPs highlighted cases where families were unable to bury loved ones for months due to unpaid fees.

MP John Kiarie of Dagoretti South condemned hospitals that assess a patient’s financial status before treatment, urging a return to life‑saving priorities.

Embakasi East MP Babu Owino described the commercialisation of health services as a betrayal of the medical oath, reinforcing the bill’s moral rationale.

The bill now proceeds to the constitutional approval stage before it can be signed into law by the President.

Personal story that spurred the legislation

Maina cited the case of Kelvin, a former medical student who died in a road accident and whose body was held at a funeral home for nearly a year while his family struggled to raise KSh 1.42 million in hospital fees.

Having represented Kelvin’s family as a pro bono High Court advocate, Maina argued that detaining a body does not help hospitals recover money but inflicts severe trauma on grieving relatives.