Mombasa County waives Sh15 million in medical bills, freeing over 100 patients
Governor Abdulswamad escribed the move as part of his administration’s ongoing efforts to ease the financial burden on vulnerable families and restore dignity to those who had been detained in hospitals due to unpaid medical fees.
The Mombasa County government has waived more than Sh15 million in unpaid hospital bills, releasing over 100 patients who had completed treatment but could not afford to pay.
Mombasa Governor Abdulswamad Nassir described the move as part of his administration’s ongoing efforts to ease the financial burden on vulnerable families and restore dignity to those who had been detained in hospitals due to unpaid medical fees.
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“Under my leadership and direction, yesterday, the County Government of Mombasa waived medical bills amounting to over Sh15 million—releasing more than 100 patients who had completed treatment but were unable to pay from our various hospitals. Putting people before profit. Restoring dignity, one life at a time,” Abdulswamad said in a statement on X.
One beneficiary expressed her relief, telling how she had been unable to leave the hospital after receiving her discharge last Saturday due to an outstanding Sh10,000 bill.
“I thank the governor for providing us with assistance. I was discharged last week on Saturday, but I couldn’t leave because of Sh10,000 unpaid bills,” she said.
Another patient who had been unable to pay Sh20,000 also thanked the governor for stepping in to alleviate the financial strain.
“I couldn’t be out of the hospital because of Sh20,000. I don’t have any parents; it’s just me. I want to thank the governor for stepping in,” she said.
The decision to waive the bills comes just days after Governor Abdulswamad called for an immediate investigation into the deaths of three patients at the Coast General Hospital following an oxygen supply failure during a scheduled maintenance at the hospital’s oxygen plant.
According to the families of the victims, the hospital failed to provide backup oxygen during the maintenance, leading to the deaths of the patients.
One of the victims’ sons described the harrowing experience.
“My dad took almost 20 minutes while he gasped for air, looking for oxygen. The nurses present were just running around but did nothing. We kept asking for the backup cylinders, but there were none—until he died while we watched helplessly,” he said.
The families of the deceased are now demanding justice and compensation for the deaths.
“We have been paying a lot of money, and we have been providing everything the doctors asked for immediately. We need justice and compensation,” another family member said.
In response to the incident, Governor Nassir ordered a full investigation and assured that those responsible for the deaths would be held accountable.
“We must launch a proper investigation, and we will ensure that if there are any staff who need to be held responsible, they must be held responsible. There are no two ways to do this,” he said.
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