Swapnil Kate, a 31-year-old patient who got a kidney transplant done in 2010 and is on dialysis since the last two years, alleged on Friday that he was overcharged for coronavirus tests at the L.H.Hiranandani hospital in Powai.
Kate was advised to undergo the COVID-19 test before getting dialysis when another patient at his regular dialysis centre tested positive and the facility went under quarantine. "We were told that we will get the COVID-19 test results within 48 hours if we get it done at Hiranandani hospital in Powai and it was also close to my house. We were hoping for a free COVID-19 test but not only were we asked to pay, but asked to pay Rs 2,000 more than the cost of the test which is Rs 4,500. This included Rs 1,000 as doctor's consultation fees despite the fact that we already had the prescription for the test from our own nephrologist at the dialysis centre. There was no doctor present on the premises at Hiranandani hospital at the time, yet we were being charged for it," said Kate.
He finally opted out of testing at the hospital and went to a private testing centre at Andheri which tested him for the novel coronavirus for free.
As per the National Health Authority, testing and treatment for COVID-19 is to be free of cost for Ayushman Bharat beneficiaries at private labs and empanelled hospitals. On April 9, the Supreme Court asked the government to make COVID-19 testing by private labs and empanelled hospitals free of charge in an interim order. At present, private lab charges are capped at Rs 4,500 a piece while the test is free at government facilities.
Malini Aisola, co-convenor, All India Drug Action Network, tweeted that 'the Supreme Court made all testing free so that nobody who needs a test is denied.' Hiranandani hospital Powai is not on the list of approved private medical labs but it is a collection centre wherein samples are collected and sent to the authorised lab that is Metropolis in Powai.
"Hiranandani hospital is essentially a sample collection centre. It issued an inflated bill with dubious charges, flouted the Rs 4,500 cap and turned away a patient with health vulnerabilities, putting him at risk. The government must notify free testing immediately as per the courts instructions and take strictest action against the hospital,” said Aisola.
"We charge Rs 4,500 and Rs 700 for PPE. We reversed his charges for the doctor's consultation upon his protest. So all he had to do was to pay Rs 5,200," said Pravin, who handles the public relations at Hiranandani hospital.
