Private hospitals in Karnataka on strike against ‘New Medical Bill’; OPD services suspended

Bengaluru, November 3: Today more than 50,000 doctors from private hospitals, clinics staged protest against Private Medical Establishments (Amendment) Bill. The Private Medical Establishments (Amendment) Bill proposes regulation of costs in private hospitals, prohibiting the hospitals from levying any additional costs from those set by the government, setting up of a grievance redressal committee to look into any complaints against the private hospitals and penalizing the doctors for any negligence in their work. 

The protest was called by the Indian Medical Association (IMA) accompanied by other doctors who belonged to private hospitals. They protest is carried out against the bill that proposed amendment empowers the government to fix prices of various medical services and prescribing punishment, including imprisonment, for doctors in case of irregularities in pricing matters.

“If the government sets up a law this way, doctors are going to be extremely wary of taking up risky cases, as the bill even proposes imprisoning the doctors for up to three years and imposing a fine of Rs 5 lakh,” Ravindra said.

“Private hospitals are being treated as commercial entities by the state- the electricity charges, water charges, everything we pay is at commercial rates and not subsidised, unlike in government hospitals. How can the state government, in such case, regulate costs in private hospitals?” Ravindra questioned.

“If the state government wants to bring out a new medical law, then it has to include the government hospitals too, by which the government hospitals could also improve,” Ravindra added.

Nearly 80% of the patients opt for private hospitals for treatment in the state. “We will be meeting all the medical associations in the state on November 5, after which we will decide our next action,” he added.

The IMA and private practitioners are demanding the state government to consider the recommendations made by the committee headed by former Chief Justice of Karnataka High Court Vikramajit Sen. Doctors and medical staff suspended their services at the out-patient department (OPD) for a day, leaving emergency and ambulance services outside the purview of their agitation.