New Delhi: The K. Chandrashekar Rao government in Telangana Monday barred the Deccan Hospitals branch in Hyderabad’s Somajiguda area from treating Covid-19 patients following multiple reports of patients being overcharged at the facility and other private hospitals.
The bar was notified through an order issued in the evening by Telangana director for public health, Dr G. Srinivasa Rao.
The Telangana government has fixed certain price ceilings for private hospitals treating Covid-19 patients in the state — isolation ward at Rs 4,000/day, Rs 7,500/day for ICU room without ventilator, and Rs 9,000/day for ICU room with ventilator. In the order, a copy of which was accessed by ThePrint, Rao has said that there were numerous complaints against Deccan Hospitals for allegedly fleecing patients, following which they conducted an inquiry.
Saying that the hospital was charging patients exorbitantly, and that the ceiling fixed by the government was not being followed, Rao added in the order, “No new Covid-19 patient shall be admitted by the said hospital, and no inconvenience shall be caused to already admitted patients.”
The Covid-19 patients already in the hospital, Rao said, will be treated in line with the price ceilings set by the state government.
“If it is found that the hospital is not following these orders, then the government will be compelled to cancel the licence issued to the hospital,” he added.
Prem Kumar Reddy, Deccan Hospitals general manager, said he will challenge the government’s decision. “I welcome it, but why must they single us out? (As many as) 99 per cent of the hospitals are overcharging and, in fact, charging even more than us,” he told ThePrint. “They must follow the same protocol for all private hospitals then,” he said.
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Patients allege harassment
The hospital came under the scanner last week after a young Telangana resident named Anreddy Radhesh, who lost both his mother and father to Covid-19 at Deccan Hospital, alleged mistreatment at the facility. Among other things, he alleged that the hospital asked him to pay Rs 7.5 lakh to claim his father’s body.
Please go through in entire post in comments?
Literally nobody knows how my situation was from past 4 weeks I lost my mom and dad my brother too , nobody knows how I am facing this situation. My dad yesterday that is 28 July 2020 asked for the change of diaper nobody turned up, pic.twitter.com/UoyOHJMGDq— Anreddy Radhesh (@anreddy_radhesh) July 29, 2020
The post went viral and triggered a hashtag #justiceforanr. Several people retweeted the thread, asking for speedy action against the hospital. As of Sunday night, Telangana had reported 66,670 Covid-19 cases and 551 deaths.
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