Families, insurers feel more pain as hospitals raise maternity fees

Private hospitals have nearly doubled maternity charges in the past eight years in a move that has effectively countered government efforts to improve the safety of mothers and new-borns with the removal of barriers to primary healthcare such as user fees.

Charges for both normal and Caesarean-section (C-section) deliveries rose by 90 per cent in major hospitals such as Nairobi Hospital, Karen Hospital and Nairobi Women’s Hospital, turning them into exclusive facilities for the deep-pocketed.