Rs 2,700 crore pending dues: AP hospitals to suspend NTR Vaidya Seva services

Vijayawada: Patients in Andhra Pradesh may soon face difficulties accessing free treatment under the Dr NTR Vaidya Seva scheme, as the Andhra Pradesh Speciality Hospitals Association (ASHA) has announced that private hospitals associated with it will cease providing services under the scheme from October 10, except for some emergency services.

The private hospitals associated with ASHA stated they are unable to continue providing treatment to the patients because the State government has not cleared dues amounting to approximately Rs 2,700 crore.

According to ASHA president Dr K. Vijay Kumar, hospitals have provided treatment worth over Rs 5,300 crore since June 2024, but the government has so far cleared only Rs 3,800 crore. The remaining bills, including those carried forward from the previous government, are still pending.

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"Network hospitals in the State had provided services worth more than Rs 5,300 crore to the public since the formation of the TDP-led NDA government in June 2024. Of this, the government has cleared Rs 3,800 crore so far," Kumar told The Hindu.

He stated that bills that should be cleared within 45 days are now taking more than 400 days. As a result, hospitals cannot run blood tests, scans, and other pre-surgery procedures free of cost until these dues are paid.

While Health Minister Satya Kumar Yadav recently stated in the Assembly that Rs 670 crore has been uploaded on the Comprehensive Financial Management System, the association said that the amount has not been released yet, which left hospitals in financial stress.

"Under the scheme, bills for services offered in network hospitals are normally cleared within two months. But bills worth Rs 2,000 crore have been under scrutiny for more than 400 days, with no clarity on when they will be settled,” said Dr Vijay Kumar.

ASHA leaders also said they will not hold any further talks with the government until the Rs 670 crore is released and a clear timeline for the remaining Rs 2000 crore is announced.

“Once again, we are unable to continue providing medical services under the scheme as the dues are mounting. Patients will now have to pay out of pocket for pre-operative procedures, such as blood tests and scans,” said ASHA vice president S.V.L. Narayana Rao.

This is not the first time the hospitals have decided to halt their services under the scheme. Earlier in May, private hospitals had threatened to stop services, but the decision was withdrawn after Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu gave them assurances. However, with no progress since then, the association decided to act again.

In a letter to the Health Minister, ASHA clarified that the decision to halt services is intended to emphasise the urgency of the matter, not to inconvenience the public. The association also stressed that pending dues must be cleared before the introduction of the Universal Health Scheme in the State.

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