Doctors have issued a two weeks nationwide strike notice to the government over failure to address their grievances.
The doctors, under the umbrella of the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union, have been been in talks for the past two weeks but threatened to go on strike should there be no amicable agreement in a fortnight.
Among their grievances, the doctors have expressed disappointment after the government withdrew the Covid-19 allowance that had earlier been set aside by the government.
The allowance was for a period of three months with doctors and other healthcare workers pushing for the government to ensure the allowance stays in place until the end of the pandemic.
So far, more than 1,000 healthcare workers have been exposed to the virus, with more than 16 succumbing.
"Six months into the pandemic the government is yet to fulfill its pledge on provision of comprehensive medical insurance and compensation for those who have lost their lives in the line of duty," KMPDU secretary general Chibanzi Mwachonda said on Monday.
"On the contrary, the incentive of an enhanced Covid-19 allowance has been withdrawn with no commitment or indication of its payment despite the increased risk that all healthcare workers continue to face."
The medics said the focus on the virus has been skewed towards procurement that has given birth to tenderprenuers at the expense of the much needed human resources for health.
