Kenya: MPs Pass Bill Barring Hospitals From Demanding Upfront Payments, Detaining Patients Over Unpaid Bills

What the report says

Kenya’s National Assembly has passed the Health (Amendment) Bill, 2024, a measure aimed at stopping hospitals from requiring upfront payment before giving emergency care and from detaining patients or the bodies of deceased persons over unpaid bills. The bill, sponsored by Kirinyaga Woman Representative Jane Njeri Maina, was approved at third reading on Wednesday, November 11, 2026, according to Capital FM as republished by AllAfrica.

The proposal would amend the Health Act, 2017, to make it an offence for health facilities to refuse emergency treatment because a patient cannot immediately pay. It would also bar hospitals and mortuaries from withholding a body to force relatives to clear medical debts. The legislation includes proposed penalties of up to Sh3 million for public healthcare facilities that demand advance payment before emergency treatment, and up to Sh2 million for public healthcare officers who authorize or facilitate detention of bodies over unpaid bills.

Maina and several MPs backing the bill said the current practice undermines access to healthcare and places families under emotional and financial pressure. The report also notes that Kenyan courts have previously ruled against hospitals holding patients or bodies as security for debt, reinforcing the wider legal debate around emergency care and dignity.

The bill now moves to the Senate for consideration before it can be sent to President William Ruto for assent. If enacted, it would add stronger statutory protections to existing constitutional and Health Act provisions on emergency treatment and dignity.