Review order on ICU beds: HC to AAP govt
JUSTICE NAVIN CHAWLA ASKED THE DELHI GOVERNMENT TO FILE ITS RESPONSE BEFORE THE NEXT DATE ON DECEMBER 15
NEW DELHI: The Delhi high court said on Wednesday that if around 50 per cent of the ICU beds reserved in private hospitals for Covid-19 patients are lying vacant, the decision to retain 80 per cent of ICU beds for coronavirus patients needs to be reviewed immediately.
The HC’s remark came on being apprised by the counsel for a private hospitals’ association that out of 5,081 ICU beds reserved for Covid-19 patients, 2,360 were vacant as on Tuesday and that there was no justification of continuation of government’s September 12 order.
Justice Navin Chawla asked the Delhi government to consider the submissions by petitioner ‘Association of Healthcare Providers’ and file its response before the next date on December 15.
During the hearing, Delhi government additional standing counsel Sanjoy Ghose urged the court to take up the matter after 10 days as the Covid-19 situation was improving in the national capital and the government, which was monitoring it, will review the situation after 10 days.
He said a review has to be done on continuation of the September 12 order by which 33 private hospitals were directed to reserve 80 per cent ICU beds for Covid-19 patients in Delhi and added that they were only going by precautionary measures.
The submission was opposed by senior advocate Maninder Singh, representing Association of Healthcare Providers, saying it was only delaying tactics and the government would do nothing and there was no application of mind.
He referred to figures of beds in private hospitals, as updated on the Delhi government’s website, and said out of a total of 1,527 Covid-19 ICU beds with ventilators and 3,554 Covid-19 beds without ventilators, 508 and 1,852 beds respectively were lying vacant as non December 8.
He further submitted that as of now, the vacancy figure is 534 Covid-19 ICU beds with ventilators and 1,908 Covid-19 beds without ventilators.