West Bengal caps Advance payment that hospital can take at time of admission, issues directives

Written by MD Bureau Published On 2020-08-11T16:23:53+05:30 | Updated On 11 Aug 2020 4:23 PM IST

West Bengal caps Advance payment that hospital can take at time of admission, issues directives

West Bengal: Hospitals in the state of West Bengal will not be allowed to charge more than Rs 50,000 per patient at the time of admission, a new directive of the West Bengal Clinical Establishment Regulatory Commission (WBCERC) has spelt.

As per a new directive of the commission, the private hospitals in West Bengal cannot charge patients more than 20 percent of the estimated cost of treatment or a maximum of Rs 50,000 at the time of admission. Confirmation to this effect was made a senior official to media persons on Sunday.

The move came after WBCERC received some complaints regarding private hospitals overcharging patients and also found that private hospitals are facing difficulties in securing the charges from patients, especially after the death of the patients. Hence, they decided to allow the hospitals to charge certain percentage amount to ensure advantages for both sides.

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PTI reports that the West Bengal Clinical Establishment Regulatory Commission (WBCERC), in a notification, also said private hospitals should not refuse admission or treatment if payment was not made immediately. "After due deliberation and careful consideration, it is decided that clinical establishments would not be entitled to demand more than 20 percent of the estimated cost of treatment or a maximum amount of Rs 50,000 whichever is less, at the time of admission," it said.

In case the patient is not in a position to deposit the required amount at the time of admission, the hospital would grant provisional admission and provide necessary treatment, the notification said. "However, the admission would be regularised upon the deposit of the amount within a period of 12 hours. In case the deposit is not made within the time stipulated, the hospital would be at liberty to cancel the provisional admission..," it added.

In another advisory, the commission asked hospitals to intimate patients regarding billing on a daily basis. Henceforth, all investigations amounting above Rs 2,000 should be done with prior intimation to the patient and his family members.

Retired judge Ashim Kumar Banerjee, chairperson of the commission told The Telegraph the amount has been decided after ensuring benefits for the patients as well as the health facilities. "I have proof that one hospital had sought a deposit of Rs 3 lakh. This had to stop. At the same time, hospitals need to stay viable".

Source : with inputs

MD Bureau

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