By Faten Omar

KUWAIT: Recently, the Health Ministry issued a new decision that requires expatriates, both residents and visitors, to pay fees for blood transfusions. According to the decision, expats in Kuwait will be charged KD 20 for each bag of blood, while foreigners on a visit visa will be charged KD 40. Kuwait Society for Human Rights (KSHR) said the Ministry of Health has disregarded, with this decision, international obligations that Kuwait has to uphold with regards to respect for human rights, including health rights, pursuing the highest level of healthcare and seeking to implement the right to healthcare through a non-discriminatory approach.

KSHR noted this decision targets cases that are in dire need of blood transfusion to save their lives, especially women in childbirth, and thus it violates what is stated in article 12 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, which stipulates “States parties shall take all appropriate measures to eliminate discrimination against women in the field of healthcare in order to guarantee them, based on equality between men and women, access to healthcare services, including…