Nakalema intervenes in exorbitant charges by private facilities treating Covid-19 patients

 

The State House Anti-Corruption Unit (SHACU), headed by Col. Edith Nakalema, has come out to intervene in the public outcry against the exorbitant charges by private health facilities for COVID-19 patients.

 

In an interview, Col. Nakalema said that she had received numerous calls from the public asking her to intervene in the ongoing ‘unhealthy’ charges by private hospitals against COVID-19 patients.

 

Nakalema said, she had decided to invite all stakeholders for an urgent meeting to deliberate on the matter and come out with a quick solution to the problem.

 

She has accordingly invited the leaders of associations of private health facilities as well as government officials and individual prominent health practitioners and experts.

 

The meeting will take place on Thursday 24^th June  at the Office of the Prime minister, which she has termed as a matter of urgency.

 

Among the expected private experts to attend the meeting is Prof. Francis Omaswa, a cardiovascular surgeon, an academic and an administrator.

 

Col. Nakalema in a recent tweet, said it was indeed alarming after the social media was awash with numerous cases of private hospitals asking for as much as sh126m as bills after handling a single COVID-19 case, even after the patient passed away.

 

On Tuesday, traders at Yamaha Centre in the city centre were alarmed when one of their colleagues, Alexandria Babirye, a prominent businesswoman contracted COVID-19 and was Sunday evening rushed to one of the faith-based city facility but she passed on the very night.

 

The business community said the husband was on Monday given a bill of sh11m and the hospital refused to release the body for burial until the bill was settled.

 

One of the traders said colleagues started fundraising to get the body, with the hospital claiming that the bill included oxygen put on the patient for hours plus burial expenses.

 

The traders accused the hospital administration of taking advantage of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic to exploit the public.

 

Some facilities have been charging sh5m per night to handle COVID patients.

 

“We shall coordinate with the police and health ministry to question these exorbitant prices. Fighting corruption requires collective efforts and together we can make a difference,” Col. Nakalema said in her tweet.

 

She also invited private companies that have in the past few weeks willingly accepted to supply free oxygen to government facilities, representatives of private health facilities and government health officials to discuss the matter for a way forward.

 

“It is becoming too much and everyone is concerned. Many people are in dilemma after private hospitals decided to go beyond the limits,” she said.

 

Cases of families selling property to clear high bills in private hospitals but in the end lose their dear ones have dominated social media, pointing fingers towards ‘big wigs’ in government who own the facilities and behind hiking the prices.

 

This came after all government facilities were overwhelmed by the surging cases of COVID-19 patients that need to be admitted to the Intensive Care Units (ICU) where they need services like oxygen.