Health body asks pvt hosps to repay Rs 2.98L in separate cases

KOLKATA: West Bengal Clinical Establishment Regulatory Commission (WBCERC) has directed various private hospitals in the city to return a cumulative amount of around Rs 2.98 lakh in separate incidents as the patients were excessively charged by all the hospitals.

In one incident, the WBCERC asked Good Samaritan Hospital to refund around Rs 40,000 after it found some faults on the part of the hospital authorities. WBCERC chairperson Justice (retired) Ashim Banerjee said one Debasish Dutta admitted his patient to the hospital on May 10 and the patient was discharged on May 14.

The patient was charged around Rs 1.20 lakh out of which Rs 60,000 was taken in advance. It was alleged that the patient was exorbitantly charged by the ambulance.

Good Samaritan Hospital has also been asked to return Rs 25,450 in a separate incident. One Moumita Dey admitted her mother on April 29 this year and she died after two days. Her father was also admitted with Covid. He was later released from the hospital. The family was asked to pay Rs 2 lakh. The Commission found that the bill was hefty.

In another case, the Commission found that a patient was charged Rs 50,000 for one day by Apex Hospital.

The Commission has also asked the hospital to return another Rs 20,000 to the patient. In another incident the Apex Hospital was asked to pay Rs 30,000 to a patient as the hospital had excessively taken bed charges.