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{
    "id": 1426210,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1426210/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 271,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Orwoba.",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": null,
    "content": "I hope that part of the amendments that could come here is on safeguarding the lives of Kenyans as we move to digital platforms and all these advanced systems, such as AI in the digital world. At the end of the day, it is our duty as legislators to ensure that we are introducing laws or amendments that will not be harmful to Kenyans, but I support this Bill. Mr. Temporary Speaker, Sir, for purposes of the Ministry of Health, I would like to highlight that there is a big problem of the queues in public hospitals on cancer treatment and diagnosis. As I speak and it is probably why Sen. Cherarkey highlighted that; I am dealing with a family that is trying to take their father to a hospital. He needs urgent medical care in terms of cancer treatment. He is in stage four. All the public hospitals he goes to state that they have a six-month waiting. Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) in terms of the treatment he needs, has up to two years waiting for you to be taken in. Imagine having been diagnosed with stage four cancer and you are told that to get the immediate treatment, for instance, at KNH, you will have to wait two years. When we tried to get the option of a private hospital because the gentleman is insured under National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF), we got a clear written feedback that treatment can start immediately, but they do not accept NHIF and all the proposed medical covers from Government. To the Ministry of Health, particularly to our Cabinet Secretary, we have to be intentional on how we are dealing with this waiting time in our public institution for cancer treatment. I do not know whether it is too much to ask, but a special working group should be put together to see how we can solve by subsidizing for some to go to private hospitals to reduce the waiting time. It does not sit well that we, the legislators and leaders, are okay, knowing that the waiting time for anyone coming in for any cancer treatment at KNH is two years. We always have ad hoc committees and special committees to deal with pending bills, for example, on Kenya Airways et cetera . We now need a committee to sit down with the Ministry of Health to deal on how to cut down all that waiting time and long queues of cancer patients waiting to be treated in public hospitals. I know that the proper way would be to bring a statement or maybe I will find another channel, but it is something that we need to highlight. It has been going on for years and nobody is doing anything about it. I support Bill. I hope that this will be the beginning of the end of all the frustration that Kenyans go through to deal with cancer treatment."
}