Attempts by Busiki County MP, Paul Akamba to introduce a private member’s Bill entitled ‘Patients Rights and Responsibility Bill 2017′ met stiff dissent from Ministry of Health after State Minister of General Duties, Sarah Opendi warned that passing of the Bill would create problems for Uganda’s health sector.
While tabling his motion, seeking leave of Parliament to table his Bill, Akamba said that the law will ensure that guidelines in the Patient’s Charter become legally binding.
He added that the Bill will go along way in improving health financing, protect patients’ rights, the quality of health care services and empowering patients to participate in the process of seeking and receiving health care.
Additionally, Akamba argued that the new law if passed will ensure ethical treatment of patients seeking or receiving health care including being treated with respect and dignity, and being informed of various options of health care available.
“Health workers are trained on how to deal with patients and yet patients are not taught their rights anywhere yet it’s the health workers supposed to conduct themselves in an ethical way,” Akamba said.
“For instance, if a health worker asks you why you got pregnant, that’s not ethical and it’s not expected of them; it’s important for them to act with tolerance and to listen to the patients,” he added.
Andrew Kaluya Kigulu South MP stood up to second the motion noting that the Bill will help save households from catastrophic expenditures and curb patients’ rights violations.
“This practice of detaining patients for non-payment of Bills is an infringement of human rights. It is so common that many citizens wrongly believe that hospitals have the right to do so. The practice increases medical impoverishment,” Kuluya said.
However, Opendi opposed the move by Parliament to grant Akamba leave warning it would bear serious implications.
“He (Akamba) has various serious implications if we moved with this Bill. I haven’t had a chance to look at what the Bill entails. In this country, Primary Health care is free, however tertiary care isn’t free,” Opendi argued.
Opendi informed Parliament that government is in the final stages of tabling the National Health Insurance Bill which will take care of all his concerns. She also argued without evidence that allowing the Bill to be tabled would have serious financial implications on the consolidated fund.
“The Bill will have serious financial implications, which Ministry of Finance will speak to. When you move with this Bill, then we will need to have another Bill entitled the health workers’ Bill. It is going to create some bit of a problem in the sector. We have the clients’ charter which is quite sufficient, we aren’t comfortable with this motion,” Opendi said.
However, when David Bahati, State Minister for Planning was asked, he was none committal about the impact the Bill will have on the consolidated fund.
“The only way we can raise the issue is going to increase the charge on the consolidated fund. At this time, if a member can work closely with Ministry of Health, so that issues are incorporated before the Bill is tabled, we haven’t seen any issues regarding charge of the consolidated fund,” Bahati said.
Without even bothering to debate on the motion, legislators voted unanimously to grant MP Akampa leave of Parliament to table the Bill.
Will the Bill see the light of day?
