Pune: The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) is planning to appoint senior officers to monitor private hospitals who are hiding or providing misleading information about the beds available in their general ward and Intensive Care Units (ICU). The civic body will not limit its action to just issuing warnings and notices but will lodge criminal complaints and cancel the licenses of such private hospitals.
Several private hospitals have received benefits like additional Floor Space Index (FSI), concession in property tax (residential rate), water connection tax and reimbursement for treatment of poor and needy people from the government.
Pune city has more than 10 thousand active cases with about 550 patients in critical condition. If the situation worsens further, there would be a requirement of five to eight thousand additional beds in the city to provide treatment for new patients. PMC is preparing itself to handle such a situation and is taking a review of all facilities including private hospitals. Senior officers will soon be appointed to visit all private hospitals and find out the actual availability of beds.
Former Municipal Commissioner Shekhar Gaikwad had issued an order to reserve 80 per cent of beds in all 17 private hospitals in the PMC jurisdiction. Out of these beds, 40 per cent of beds will be used for treating COVID patients. PMC's order of reserving the beds means that the hospital will have to charge the patient as per government norms and rates and those violating these orders will have to face action. In reality, most of the private hospitals have conveniently ignored these orders and continue to charge exorbitant amounts from patients. PMC has also received several complaints of denial of treatment to patients by private hospitals. Sources say that even senior politician Sharad Pawar had personally called up a private hospital owner to comply with PMC orders, but the hospital is yet to follow.
Rubal Agrawal, Additional Commissioner of PMC said, "We are trying to reduce the mortality rate of COVID patients in the city, but some private hospitals are not cooperating with the civic body. These hospitals are hiding information on the availability of their private rooms, ICU and ventilators and are showing it as unavailable or occupied. We are appointing officers to check the actual situation in these hospitals and patients will be admitted if beds are found vacant."
