Kuwait's Minister of Planning and Development, Hend Al-Sobeh, announced the decision to cancel free adult diapers for elderly patients in long-term care.
A Kuwaiti official revealed that the minister is aiming to save the state funds, and adult diapers should paid for out of monthly funds already allocated for elder care.
The government source added that Al-Sobeh made the decision after reexamining the budget and realizing that providing additional adult diapers was techincally a duplication and causing the budget to be inflated. The source stressed that the elderly receive additional funding aid from the ministry of social affairs and labor.
Further investigation revealed that a quantity of the free diapers provided for the elderly were caught several times on sale at the black market. This has reflected negatively on the state, and raised concerns about corruption and misallocated funds.
Al-Sobeh also cut Planning and Development programs that provided financial aid for mothers with handicapped children who were also recieving benefits from the Ministry of Social Affairs. Budget analysis revealed that overlapping ministry funding was overinflating the budget.
Kuwait is attempting to enact widespread government funding reforms in 2016 - which involves pulling funding for overlapping and over-provided services.
