21 Ghaziabad hospitals removed from Ayushman panel over scheme violations
Ghaziabad: Twenty-one private hospitals in Ghaziabad have been removed from the Ayushman Bharat panel for allegedly violating prescribed standards, denying cashless treatment to beneficiaries and demanding additional payments. Following the action, the number of Ayushman-empanelled hospitals in the district has fallen from 84 to 63.
The action was taken following complaints from beneficiaries and data analysis by the state anti-fraud unit. According to officials, the hospitals failed to meet 35 standards prescribed by the Centre for healthcare facilities empanelled under the scheme.
During the investigation, officials found complaints of hospitals allegedly refusing admission to Ayushman card holders and asking patients to pay extra for treatment covered under the scheme.
Several irregularities were also detected in hospital records. In some cases, patients who had visited the hospital's outpatient department were allegedly recorded as inpatients. Officials also found instances of the same patient being shown as admitted more than once.
According to TOI, the hospitals removed from the panel include Maxwell Multispeciality Hospital, Yashoda Hospital Research Centre, Om Eye & Gynaecology Centre, Dev Eye Centre, Apex Multispeciality Hospital, Krishna Hospital & Trauma Centre, Vidyawati Dubey Hospital, SM Hospital, Uttam Hospital, Meenakshi Hospital, Shivam Hospital & HA Centre, Santosh Sudarshan Hospital, S Sanjeevani Hospital, Dental Park, Aaradhya Medi Life Centre, Sparsh Medicare & Trauma Centre, Nagar Hospital and St Joseph Hospital, among others.
There were also cases where patients were shown as unnecessarily admitted. In some instances, patients visiting the OPD were shown as IPD admissions. Repeated admissions of the same patient were also detected.
Under the Ayushman Bharat scheme, empanelled hospitals are required to provide eligible beneficiaries with cashless treatment for covered procedures. Authorities said removing hospitals that fail to follow the rules was necessary to protect patients from being denied treatment or being asked to make unauthorised payments.
Officials have also urged Ayushman card holders to report any demand for additional payment for covered treatment so that complaints can be investigated and appropriate action taken.
The district administration said the empanelled hospitals will continue to be monitored to ensure compliance with scheme requirements and prevent irregularities that could affect beneficiaries.
