A/HRC/43/41/Add.1 H. Living independently in the community 53. Kuwait has an advanced housing welfare system for persons with disabilities. The Housing Welfare Law (No. 47/1993) and articles 32 to 34 of Law No. 8/2010 establish that Kuwaitis with disabilities and their families who meet certain conditions are entitled to a housing grant and have priority over the allocation of real estate loans from the Kuwait Credit Bank to build or purchase a home. 54. Article 61 of Law No. 21/2015 on the protection of the rights of the child mandates the Public Authority for Disabled Affairs to establish institutions and facilities to rehabilitate children with disabilities through the issuance of construction licences. Information on the total number of residential institutions with licences issued by the Authority to provide residential care for children with disabilities was not available. The Authority directly manages four care and rehabilitation centres for persons with disabilities which, at the time of the visit, were providing day care to 183 people and residential care to another 594. The Ministry of Health also manages rehabilitation centres, and private charities run several residential institutions. 55. The Special Rapporteur stresses that all institutions segregate and isolate individuals from their communities, deny their choice and control over living and support arrangements, and significantly restrict their day-to-day decisions. Persons with disabilities, including those with high support needs, must have the opportunity to live in their communities, choose their place of residence and with whom they live, as required under article 19 of the Convention. Institutionalization is particularly detrimental for children who, according to article 23 (5), should be provided with care within the immediate or wider family, and failing that, within the community in a family setting. 56. During a visit to a residential care and rehabilitation centre in South al-Sabahiya managed by the Public Authority for Disabled Affairs, the Special Rapporteur noted with concern the conditions in which persons with disabilities were living: wearing uniforms and treated as patients, sleeping in hospital-type beds and wards without any personal items, constantly being monitored and following a strict daily schedule. She was informed that most of the residents did not receive visits from their families or had been abandoned. Moreover, she was alarmed by the conditions in the men’s rehabilitation ward, where the residents were kept in “sitting rooms” under permanent surveillance. The common showers did not ensure the privacy of residents and, despite having been recently cleaned, smelled foul. 57. Against this background, the Special Rapporteur noted that the Public Authority for Disabled Affairs is moving in the right direction by gradually reducing the number of residents in such institutions, in favour of non-residential services, including early intervention, day care and vocational training. 58. She urges the Government to adopt a concrete deinstitutionalization plan, inclusive of a moratorium on new admissions, with clear benchmarks, to close all existing public and private institutions and to support the transition to community-based services and supported living arrangements for persons with disabilities. The deinstitutionalization of children with disabilities should be a political priority. I. Health 59. Article 15 of the Constitution guarantees the right to health to all its citizens, including those with disabilities. This right is also referred to in articles 7, 8 and 12 of Law No. 8/2010. Kuwait has good health-care infrastructures, distributed among primary healthcare centres, six general hospitals and a number of national specialized hospitals and clinics. Medical services provided to persons with disabilities include preventive care, curative care, rehabilitation and psychiatric services. The Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Hospital is the primary provider of therapy and rehabilitation for persons with disabilities. Rehabilitation is provided free of charge to Kuwaitis with disabilities, while other residents have to rely on public charities and other funds. 60. The Special Rapporteur noted the efforts of the Ministry of Health to provide access to quality health care to Kuwaitis with disabilities, including in the area of sexual and reproductive health and rights and by supporting access to specialized treatment abroad. 12