Sabina Chege Pushes For a Law to Force Public Officers to Use Public Hospitals

Nominated MP Sabina Chege has urged Parliament to channel more resources and enact policy reforms to revive Kenya’s ailing public health system, warning that it is now on the brink of collapse.

Moving a motion on Wednesday to make it mandatory for public officers to use public hospitals, Chege drew on her extensive firsthand visits to facilities from bustling towns to remote villages, laying bare the painful gap between the constitutional promise of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and reality on the ground.

Despite Kenya’s pledge to Universal Health Coverage (UHC) under Article 43(1)(a) of the Constitution, she noted, underfunded public hospitals have left ordinary citizens at the mercy of costly private care.

“We lack sufficient resources to adequately support public healthcare,” she told MPs. “Public hospitals are often underfunded, limiting their ability to offer quality services, even though significant deductions are made from public officers’ salaries under the Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF).”

Chege questioned where this money truly ends up, asking if it helps improve local hospitals where ordinary Kenyans seek care or if it quietly flows into exclusive private facilities that remain out of reach for most citizens.
Kenya’s public health system is structured from Level 1 community services up to Level 6 referral hospitals. Yet the entire nation relies on just six Level 6 public hospitals: Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH), Kenyatta University Teaching, Referral and Research Hospital (KUTRRH), Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH), National Spinal Injury Referral Hospital (NSIRH), Mwai Kibaki Level 6 Hospital in Othaya, and Mathari National Teaching and Referral Hospital (MNTRH).

Chege warned that this over-reliance on private hospitals undermines the financial stability and growth of these essential public institutions.

Citing her own visit to KNH’s private wing, she described worn-out infrastructure, outdated bathtubs, and the indignity patients face even in supposedly premium sections.

This, she argued, reflects the urgent need for increased investment to restore public hospitals to their former status as regional centres of excellence.

“This is a facility where people from other nations used to come for treatment. Presidents once received care at KNH,” Chege reminded the House. “When did the rain start beating us?”

Mental health care is equally neglected, she noted, with Mathari remaining the only national mental hospital a stark reality in a country grappling with rising cases of depression and related illnesses.

Chege called for county-level investment in mental health care, noting that rising demand cannot be met by a single institution.

Chege challenged her fellow MPs to ask themselves where they or their families would realistically seek treatment if they suddenly fell ill in their constituencies.

She argued that mandatory use of public hospitals by public officers would boost funding to these institutions, encourage healthcare professionals to be more present, and help restore public trust.

“Many of us avoid public hospitals because of congestion and under-staffing,” she said. “But if doctors know that a Member of Parliament can walk in at any time, they will give quality services.”

To show what’s possible with proper investment, Chege pointed to KUTRRH: a modern facility equipped with advanced PET scanners and soon a children’s hospital with a 300-bed capacity.

She urged MPs to tour the hospital and see firsthand the benefits of sustained investment.

“Supporting public facilities will ensure that our children, especially Gen Z many still unemployed and unable to afford private care, can access essential health services,” she stressed.

Drawing lessons from countries like the United Kingdom and Thailand, which have heavily invested in public health, Chege said Kenya should do the same by improving infrastructure, modernising diagnostic equipment, and matching the salaries and incentives of public sector medical professionals with those in private facilities.

She called on the Ministry of Health to develop a policy ensuring adequate funding and accountability in public health expenditure, reminding MPs that collectively they enjoy a medical cover worth billions.

“Let us have confidence in our own facilities,” Chege concluded. “If more people used public hospitals, the money would return to the system, strengthening healthcare for everyone.”