NEW DELHI: A day after TOI reported about vacant free beds in private hospitals, Delhi Government issued show-cause notices to eight hospitals and threatened to suspend their registration with immediate effect if their reply is found to be unsatisfactory. The decision was taken in a meeting chaired by Delhi health minister A K Walia on Wednesday. The private hospitals, which were allotted land on concessional rates, are obliged to provide 25 per cent free treatment in OPD and 10 per cent free beds to poor in IPD.
"Eight private hospitals - B L Kapoor Hospital; Max Hospital, Saket; Escorts Heart Institute, Okhla; Dharamshila Cancer Hospital; Fortis Hospital, Vasant Kunj; Primus Superspecialty Hospital, Chanakyapuri; PSRI, Sheikh Sarai; and Rockland Hospital, Qutab Institutional Area are being issued show-cause notices. "The hospitals have to submit a reply. In case their reply is found to be unsatisfactory, their registration will be suspended with immediate effect and subsequent action will be taken in due course," said a senior official. He said that in the case of Apollo Hospital - which is supposed have 33 per cent free beds for poor patients as per their agreement with the state government - separate action will be taken after due consideration.
"We are going to take strict action against all defaulters. It has been noticed that private hospitals which were allotted land on concessional rates have not been fulfilling their obligations in providing free treatment to the poor patients. It seems the poor are being denied this facility on certain flimsy grounds," said Walia. He asked senior officials from the health department and the directorate of health services to take steps to ensure that poor patients are treated in private hospitals.
As reported in: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Free-beds-Govt-notice-to-8-hospitals/articleshow/9128361.cms