Maharashtra Takes Control Of 80% Of Private Hospital Beds, Caps Rates

The Maharashtra government has taken control of 80 per cent of all private hospital beds in the state till August 31 as it tackles over 40,000 coronavirus cases, the most in the country. Facing complaints of exorbitant rates charged by hospitals, the Uddhav Thackeray government has also capped the price for treatment.

An order late last night enables the government to regulate the use of private hospital beds and also decide how much can be billed to patients. Hospitals are allowed to charge their own rates in the remaining 20 per cent beds.

For the rest, ward and isolation bed rates have been capped at Rs 4,000. For ICU beds without ventilators, the cost will be Rs 7,500 per day while an ICU bed with ventilator support will be billed at Rs 9,000.

The government has also fixed the cost of nearly 270 procedures and surgeries, including cancer treatments. The package rates will include doctors' fee. Hospitals can pay more if they want to.

The order covers hospitals run by charitable trusts, including nursing homes. Several well-known hospitals like Jaslok Hospital, Lilavati Hospital and Nanavati Hospital have to submit to the order.

Hospitals cannot charge more than Rs 75,000 for normal deliveries and for caesareans, they can only charge Rs 86,250. The price of knee replacements has been capped at Rs 1,60,000 and an angiography cannot cost more than Rs 12,000. An angioplasty cannot be priced at more than Rs 1.2 lakh, the order states in its long list.

There should be no difference in the quality of treatment for patients in the regulated and non-regulated beds, the state government has ordered.

Maharashtra has 41,642 COVID-19 cases, with Mumbai crossing the 25,000 mark.