Little relief for hospitals that denied free treatment to poor

2 hospitals slapped with heavy fines for denying free treatment to EWS sufferers got little relief as the government informed the Delhi High Court that it would hear the hospitals afresh on the problem.

Hefty fine      

The Delhi High Court set aside the order of government for enforcing a heavy fine of Rs. 503 crore on the Fortis Escorts Heart Institute, Okhla, and Rs 17.86 crore on the institute of Dharamshila Cancer Hospital. The 2 hospitals had shifted the High Court claiming they weren’t heard by the government before being violated and punished.

The government informed Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva that it has believed the representation of the hospitals and has chose to grant them another hearing.

The hospitals were inquired to deposit the rate of unjust enrichment since they had allegedly refused free treatment to poor sufferers.

The Delhi government had inquired 4 other Delhi-based private hospitals or institutions — Shanti Mukand Hospital, Max Super Specialty Hospital (Saket), and Pushpawati Singhania Research Institute — to submit “unwarranted profits” they gained from allegedly denying free treatment to the poor patients.

During the comprehensive hearing on the day of Tuesday, the counsel of Delhi government informed the court that the special committee would hear the hospital authorities on the day of August 17.

The health department had previously informed the court that the hospitals were given land at concessional amounts between the years of 1960 and 1990 on the condition that they will treat the poor patients free of cost, but they didn’t abide by it.

As many as forty-three private hospitals in the city of Delhi were allotted land at the concessional amounts on the condition that they’ll keep 10% of their in-patient department capacity and 25% of out-patient department capacity to treat and cure the economically weaker section sufferers free of cost.