Nagpur: Acting upon the series of complaints against a slew of hospitals heavily charging patients in the name of Covid treatment, Nagpur Municipal Corporation’s Additional Commissioner Jalaj Sharma has issued notices to 13 hospitals including Seven Star Hospital, Kingsway Hospital, Wockhardt, Viveka Hospital, Arneja Hospital among others.
The complaints of excessive billings have reached to city’s former Mayor and senior BJP leader Sandip Joshi who has launched a crusade against such erring hospitals in order to relieve the people already reeling under financial burden. On Tuesday, Joshi had met Additional Commissioner Jalaj Sharma at the latter’s office and demanded action against these hospitals while handing over the complaints he received from various sections of people. Joshi had also warned of agitation if no action would be taken in the concerned matter.
When Nagpur Today contacted NMC Additional Commissioner Jalaj Sharma, his office informed that notices were served to as many as 13 hospitals after Sandip Joshi met him and raised the issue.
“We have sought bill and treatment details from the erring hospitals while our auditor is also working on the same. We will seek strict action against the hospitals found involved in the malpractices, and levy fine on them,” Sharma told Nagpur Today.
It is learnt that one of these hospitals have been accused of charging as much as 3.5 lakhs just for a week’s treatment without ICU, ventilator or Remdesivir.
“We were not even informed about the cost and were made to sign a document just a day before discharge under the assurance that our bill would not exceed Rs 75,000. I was told that our deposit amount of Rs 50000 was covered and the extra expense of two days would be charged. But on the seventh day when my wife was discharged we were handed over the bill of Rs 3.5 lakh. We were also threatened that if we would not pay the bill the charge would keep on increasing multifold. We have been cheated as my wife was admitted in a non-ICU room without ventilator support. Oxygen support was also given just for a day. We were misguided and cheated and we look forward to get our money back which we had arranged after taking loan from others,” said Rajendra Shivhare, one of the patients’ kin who were forced to bear the multifold cost.
As per the information received from NMC, the list of hospitals who have been issued notices include,
1. Kingsway Hospital, near Kasturchand Park
2. Wockhardt Hospital, Shankar Nagar and Gandhi Nagar
3. Seven Star Hospital, Jagnade Square, Nandanvan
4. Viveka Hospital, Parsodi, Subhash Nagar
5. Sushrut Hospital, Ramdaspeth
6. Ayushman Hospital, Ramdaspeth
7. Arneja Hospital, Ramdaspeth
8. VIMS Hospital, Kamptee road
9. Hope Hospital, Kamptee road
10.Safe Hands Hospital, Lakadganj
11. Radiance Hospital, Central Avenue, Chhapru Nagar, Ambedkar Square
12. Medicare Hospital, Mankapur
13. Aureus Hospital, Wanjari Nagar
Source link