Mengo hospital withholds body over Shs 64m medical bill

A family in Lungujja is in anguish after Mengo hospital allegedly refused to release the body of their son, Jessey Kiberu, over unpaid medical bills amounting to Shs 64 million.

According to Brian Kalenge, the family’s lawyer, Kiberu had been battling mental illness before mysteriously disappearing from home three weeks ago. He was later found and admitted to Mengo hospital’s intensive care unit (ICU), where he died days later.

Kalenge told URN that the family was shocked to learn that Kiberu had suffered multiple organ failure, allegedly as a result of medication administered during his disappearance.

The hospital reportedly attributed the rising medical bill to the high cost of detoxification and intensive care procedures. Initially, the hospital had asked for Shs 30 million, but the bill later escalated to Shs 64 million. The family managed to raise Shs 25 million through a fundraising drive and had hoped this would be sufficient to secure the release of the body for burial.

However, during a meeting held on Wednesday morning, hospital administrators reportedly declined to release the body until the full amount is cleared. Kalenge said the hospital’s position has left the family distressed and unable to bury their loved one.

When contacted for comment, Mengo hospital managing director Dr Simon Peter Nsingo said he was in meetings and would respond at a later time. Legal experts say the hospital’s conduct could amount to a human rights violation.

Ruth Ajalo, a lawyer at the Center for Health, Human Rights and Development (CEHURD), said detaining bodies over unpaid bills is illegal and morally indefensible. She cited a 2023 High court ruling in which CEHURD successfully challenged the detention of a 14-year-old boy at Jaro hospital over a Shs 4 million bill.

In that landmark judgment, the court declared that hospitals regardless of ownership have no right to detain patients or deceased persons due to unsettled medical costs.

“This is a gross violation of human dignity,” Ajalo said.

She said if the hospital believes the family owes them money, the appropriate course of action is to pursue the claim in court and not to hold a body hostage.

The court ruling followed public outcry during the COVID-19 pandemic, when several private hospitals were accused of detaining bodies of deceased patients over unpaid bills.