Pvt hospitals to refund patients extra charges
Following several complaints of private hospitals overcharging Covid-19 patients, the Gautam Budh Nagar administration directed hospitals to refund whatever was charged over and above the cost capped by the state government, with interest.
District magistrate Suhas LY said that strict action will also be taken against private hospitals found involved in malpractices amid the Covid-19 pandemic. “It is really unfortunate that people already battling Covid-19 have to bear the brunt of exorbitant bills from hospitals as well, which violates rules laid down by the state government. At the same time, we are encouraging hospitals to adhere to rules set by the state government for price caps,” he said.
Appealing to the people to notify him if hospitals are found overcharging for Covid-19 treatment, or not adhering to the government guidelines on costs, the DM said that as many as 40 complaints of excess charging by private hospitals have so far been sent to the health department.
“Nearly 20 of the complaints were related to hospitals outside the district, and we referred these to the administrations concerned. For the remaining 20, we took action and have settled 14 complaints so far, in which hospitals have refunded the patients. Health
officials are looking into the remaining six complaints,” he said.
The DM also said that non- compliance with price caps was one of the main violations brought to the notice of health officials. “The state government, in June last year, had classified private hospitals into two different categories -National Accreditation Board for Hospitals and Healthcare Providers (Nabh)-accredited and NON-NABH hospitals. Similarly, patients have been categorised in three groups – moderate, severe and very severe. The rates for Nabh-accredited hospitals were capped at ₹10,000 to ₹18,000 per day, including the cost of PPE kits. For the NON-NABH category, the rates were ₹8,000 to ₹15,000 per day, including the
cost of PPE kits,” he said.
The district’s chief medical officer, Dr Deepak Ohri, said that prices were also capped for ICU and non-icu wards.
“But private hospitals have single and double rooms and suites as well. So they went ahead and raised the charges. We intervened following complaints and made them reduce the prices. We have been conducting regular checks to keep a tab on the pricing by hospitals,” he said.
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