Kuwait The Kuwait Human Rights Society (KHRS) called on the health ministry to reconsider its decision to hike health services fees for expatriates, as the society found that inability to pay the new charges has forced many expats to discontinue treatment.KHRS asked the ministry to avoid hitting expat pockets, and described Oct 1, the day the increase fees came into effect, as a day of tragedy. The society said in a report that the fee increases have led to a decrease in patient visits by 30 percent, and the reasons for this are clear – which is the inability of patients to follow up their conditions due to financial reasons. It said regardless of the positive effects of this reduction the ministry thinks it has achieved, for every action there is a reaction, as reports on social media spoke about the death of an expat of a heart attack after he left the hospital under his own cognizance but was rushed back the next day, to no avail. KHRS said this shows that the increased charges have made expats ignore their health conditions, which can result in a health catastrophe and humanitarian tragedies in this ‘humanitarian center’. The report said the health ministry has excluded some categories from the new fees, in addition to domestic helpers, adding that the exemption of some groups that are beneficiaries of health insurance is under consideration, in addition to including other groups and diseases. KHRS believes these measures are not in favor of the ministry and proves the fee increase was not made after a thorough study.
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