Kolkata: Rs 3 lakh deposit demand plaint by victim’s kin

KOLKATA: In the first police complaint of high deposit demand after the West Bengal Clinical Establishment Regulatory Commission allowed hospitals to charge an advance of no more than Rs 50,000 or 20% of the estimated treatment cost (whichever was lower) at the time of admission, the family of a Covid victim from Tamluk on Tuesday alleged that she died in an ambulance while a private hospital off EM Bypass — now a corona unit — kept asking for a deposit of Rs 3 lakh.The complaint lodged with Anandapur police has been forwarded to health department for inquiry.
According to the family, the woman in her late 60s had earlier been admitted to a nursing home at Park Circus where she tested positive. She lost her husband three days ago to the infection. The family was asked to take the elderly woman to a Covid facility. Her son hired an ambulance and brought her to Desun Hospital on Monday night. The family alleged that the hospital had demanded Rs 3 lakh in advance. The family reportedly paid Rs 80,000 as a first instalment but said the hospital stuck to its demand. The family faced some technical issues before they could pay up Rs 2 lakh more. But, the hospital said another Rs 20,000 had to be paid. The patient, the family alleged, was in ambulance all along and later she died inside it. Anandapur police reached the spot, pacified the kin and received the complaint.

“We have received the complaint and forwarded it to state health department. We are treating it as a general complaint. Based on the findings of their expert panel, we will ascertain legal action,” said DC (East) Gourab Lal. The hospital refuted the charges saying the family was given an estimate for treatment. It admitted taking Rs 80,000 as advance deposit citing that staffers in the billing section were not aware about the West Bengal Clinical Establishment Regulatory Commission’s advisory. “The patient was brought in a very serious condition. Out doctors tried CPR in ambulance itself but could not revive her,” said Tapas Mukherjee, deputy MD at Desun Hospital.
Private hospitals said efforts are being made to make billing as much transparent as possible. While updates on bills are being communicated to patient party regularly, hospitals said it would not be possible to communicate with patient’s family on some tests that need repetition. But, for costly investigations like MRI, CT scan and costly medications, hospitals make it a point to take the consent of the family. “We are seeing a good number of patients whose condition remains unchanged in the ICU for days. Even if doctors feel that the prognosis could be bad, they cannot stop treatment. With prolonged stay in ICU, the bill will get fatter,” said Sudipta Mitra, CEO Peerless Hospital.
As patients’ kin are discouraged from visiting facilities, hospitals said apprising them of every little detail on phone/mail is difficult.