The Nigerian National Assembly has issued a strong warning to hospitals nationwide against any delay in attending to emergency patients.
This followed a resolution at both chambers of the National Assembly on Wednesday, warning that any hospital or health practitioner found wanting will lose medical licence, pay a fine of up to N300,000, or face six months imprisonment.
According to the legislature, the development is part of a coordinated move to amend the National Health Act, 2014, to eliminate long-standing barriers to emergency care, such as demands for advance payment, police clearances, or administrative delays.
The proposed law, sponsored by Senator Abdulaziz Yar’Adua, passed second reading at the Senate while at the House, the same bill sponsored by Representative Akin Rotimi, equally scaled through.
According to the lawmakers, no public or private hospital will be allowed to deny anyone emergency treatment for any reason under the bill.
The legislation also defines an emergency patient as a person whose vital signs indicate the need for urgent medical intervention to prevent deterioration, disability or death.
“A person or health facility that contravenes any provision of this section commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding N300,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or both,” the bill states.
During plenary at the Senate on Wednesday, Senator Yar’Adua said the amendment would address critical gaps in Nigeria’s healthcare system and guarantee timely, life-saving treatment for patients regardless of their social status, wealth, influence or location.
According to him, while the existing National Health Act already prohibits refusal of emergency treatment, it lacks specific timelines and detailed procedures needed for effective enforcement.
Backing the proposed law, Senate Whip, Senator Mohammed Monguno (APC, Borno North), said it would help address preventable deaths arising from road accidents and maternal emergencies.
He lamented that some healthcare providers neglect emergency patients, leading to avoidable deaths.