Kenya

Article 43 of the Constitution provides for economic and social rights including the right for every person to the highest attainable standard of health, which includes the right to health care services, including reproductive health care. The same article also affirms the rights to accessible and adequate housing, to reasonable standards of sanitation, to be free from hunger, to have adequate food of acceptable quality, to clean and safe water in adequate quantities, to social security, and, to education. It states that no person can be denied emergency medical treatment. Under article 42 of the Constitution a right for every person to a clean and healthy environment is recognized. Furthermore, the Constitution grants health-related right to specific groups including consumers (art. 46, right to the protection of their health and safety) children (art. 53, right to basic nutrition, shelter and health care), minorities and marginalised groups (art. 56, duty of the State to put in place programmes to ensure that minorities and marginalised group have reasonable access to water, health services and infrastructure).

The Constitution specifies matters that fall under the jurisdiction of national governments and those that fall under county governments' jurisdiction. Specifically under the fourth schedule of the Constitution, it is provided that the national government is responsible for national referral health facilities and health policy while the county governments are responsible for the county health services including county health facilities and pharmacies, ambulances services and promotion of primary health care (non exhaustive-list).

The goal of the Kenya Health Policy 2014-2030 is to attain the highest possible standard of health in a responsive manner (p. 29).

The policy aims to eliminate communicable conditions, halt and reverse the rising burden of non-communicable conditions, reduce the burden of violence and injuries, provide essential healthcare, minimize exposure to health risk factors, and strengthen collaboration with private and other health-related sectors (pp. 4-5).

The Kenya Health Policy 2014-2030 is grounded in the Constitution of Kenya 2010, which guarantees the right to the highest attainable standard of health (Article 43) and mandates the State to take legislative, policy, and other measures to achieve the progressive realization of these rights (pp. 1-2).

The policy calls for the development and strengthening of legislative and administrative frameworks to guide the classification and operations of health service delivery systems (p. 43). It emphasizes the need for a comprehensive legal and regulatory framework to guide sector actions, including the regulation of traditional and complementary medicines (p. 47). The policy also includes the establishment of a social health protection mechanism to facilitate universal health coverage and the development and implementation of a healthcare financing policy (pp. 49-50). Additionally, it mandates the development of a national health products and technologies policy and a harmonized national regulatory framework for health products and technologies to ensure quality, safety, and efficacy (pp. 51-52). The policy also requires the development and implementation of a health information systems (HIS) policy and a health research and development policy (p. 51).

The main goal of the Kenya Health Sector Strategic Plan 2018–2023: Transforming Health Systems: Achieving Universal Health Coverage by 2022 is to provide a framework for investing in primary health care (PHC) (page 1).

The plan prioritizes eliminating communicable conditions, halting and reversing the rising burden of non-communicable conditions and mental disorders, reducing the burden of violence and injuries, providing essential health care, minimizing exposure to health risk factors, and strengthening collaboration with the private sector and other health-related sectors (pages 46-48).

In the "Background" and "Situation Analysis" sections, the document references several laws and regulations. The Constitution of Kenya 2010 is highlighted for its role in establishing the right to the highest attainable standard of health and devolving health services to county governments (pages 13-16). Additionally, the Health Act 2017 is mentioned in relation to health governance and service delivery (pages 40,41).

Throughout the rest of the document, specific actions related to laws and regulations are detailed. For instance, the plan calls for the implementation of the Public Health Act 1986, revised 2012, to align with the Health Act 2017 and universal health coverage aspirations (page 60). It also emphasizes the need for adherence to the Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act 2015, revised 2016, to ensure the procurement of health products and technologies (page 67). In the "Indicators and Targets" section, the plan highlights the importance of compliance with the Health Act 2017 and other regulatory frameworks to achieve the set health targets (pages 101-115). These actions are crucial for ensuring that the health sector operates within the legal and regulatory frameworks established to promote public health and safety.