Nakalema engages medics on high COVID-19 treatment cost

The State House Anti-Corruption Unit (SHACU) has started consulting with senior medics as a way of finding solutions to the rising cost of COVID-19 treatment by private health facilities.

As part of the engagement, the SHACU head, Col. Edith Nakalema, on Thursday held discussions with senior medical practitioners.

She chaired a consultative meeting with private health providers, COVID-19 task force and experts to discuss a way forward on the exorbitant charges of covid-19 patients and provide solutions to the public outcry.

Nakalema  later shared details of the meeting on her Twitter handle as below.

Medical practitioners are trained to save lives, and all Ugandans have a Constitutional duty to protect the lives and property of fellow Ugandans. Soldiers also have that duty. H.E. the President created SHACU & tasked us to receive complaints from citizens and coordinate with MDAs to address these concerns. Today we met over the high cost of COVID-19 treatment in some places. 

SH-ACU has registered 496 complaints about exorbitant charges of COVID19 treatment in private hospitals. We had to respond by coordinating with senior colleagues in Govt on the COVID19 T/Force & State House Health Monitoring Unit.  

We all know that this COVID-19 Pandemic has heavily affected the whole world, Uganda inclusive, so apart from being a Public Health issue it’s also an issue of National Security!  

We met with the Health Fraternity in Uganda, Gen.Rusoke - C/man Intersectoral Committee COVID19 T/Force, to consult with each other and arrive at a consensus to save the lives of our fellow Ugandans TODAY. Not tomorrow - TODAY! 

Every minute that we spend talking, as you know very well, some of our fellow Ugandans are out there dying because they cannot breathe, they cannot get admissions to hospital beds, they cannot find the right treatment quickly enough. 

In the situation we are facing, which nobody in the world ever anticipated before 2020, everybody must ask: WHAT IS ETHICAL? WHAT IS ACCEPTABLE? WHAT IS REPREHENSIBLE? WHAT SHOULD WE DO? 

We sat down all day to agree how all of us are going to save the lives of all Ugandans during this COVID-19 pandemic. 

There are many Ugandans who are dying in their homes simply because they fear to face high deposit hospital fees. This is unacceptable! We appealed to the  medical Authorities  to heed the loud public outcry about exorbitant hospital fees. TODAY! 

Ugandans have come out with bleeding cries over their dying or even dead relatives - these are YOUR relatives, everybody. If you have not yet suffered this personally remember that you might suffer it soon.