COVID-19: Private Indian hospital exploiting patients barred from treating coronavirus cases

Hyderabad: Telangana state government has barred Deccan Hospital from treating COVID-19 patients after several serious exploitation complaints were made against it.

The orders revoking permission to treat patients came after a youth, A Radhesh Reddy, had complained to the government that the prominent private hospital had charged him Rs 1.7 million for the treatment of both of his parents who died in the hospital. The hospital had refused to release the body of his father Satyanarayana Reddy until he cleared the dues.

The hospital was also facing several other serious complaints including one from a lawyer who said he was admitted into a COVID-19 ward even though his test was negative. In his complaint to the police he said he was charged Rs 300,000 for the four day treatment by the hospital.

State health director G Srinivas Rao announcing the ban on the hospital said that action was taken “for inappropriate and surplus billing. Investigations are on about the similar allegations against other private hospitals too”.

Action was taken against Deccan Hospital under Telangana Allopathic Private Medical Care Establishments Act 2002 and Epidemic Diseases Act 1897 for flouting the ceiling fixed by the state government for the treatment of coronavirus cases.

Reddy, who said his family spent Rs 4 millon on the treatment of both his parents and a cousin brother, welcomed the action against the hospital. “Justice has been served. I hope this serves as a deterrent to other private hospitals who are fleecing people”.

State Health Minister E Rajender said that a vigilance panel was formed to probe all such complaints of over charging against private hospitals. Many people have complained that these health care institution were demanding Rs half a million as advance to admit a suspected case of COVID-19.