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Nakuru Governor Susan Kihika yesterday ordered the release of some 64 patients detained at the Nakuru Level Five Hospital over unpaid bills.

Kihika issued the directive after meeting the hospital’s board and agreed to waive the bills amounting to Sh5 million as her first incentive as the county boss.

Speaking at the hospital, Kihika said the patients including children,  had already been discharged but were unable to settle their bills due to financial constraints.

“I have found that there are quite a few patients who are here in hospital, some for months where treatment was completed but they could not be discharged because of being unable to raise the monies needed for treatment,” said Kihika.

In the same breath, the county boss ordered that all bodies of dead people detained at the mortuary due to pending bills be released to their next of kin with immediate effect. “I have also found out that there are bodies lying at the morgues that their loved ones have been unable to get them due to pending bills, I have ordered that the same be released to their families,” she said.

She reiterated her plans to upgrade all sub-county hospitals to level five hospitals with adequate bed capacity in all wards and establishment of maternity facilities by expanding and upgrading existing health facilities.

“The county will develop, through public-private initiative, a Level Four Hospital in Nakuru to offer dedicated services to all public servants, both county and national, the disciplined forces, provincial administration and community health workers,” said Kihika.

The county boss further pledged to work with the national government to ensure universal health access through the Nakuru Medicare card and universal access to National Hospital Insurance Fund  cover with the aim of eliminating out-of-pocket expenditure for all citizens in Nakuru, as a short-term measure.