The SC said citizens of India have a fundamental right to healthcare and when it comes to this matter, the Centre cannot shirk its responsibility, TOI reported on Wednesday.
For example, cataract surgery in a government hospital costs up to Rs 10,000 while the same goes up to anywhere between Rs 30,000-1,40,000 in a private facility.
The SC has taken strong exception to this particular disparity. It further took on the Centre seeking implementation of the 14-year-old Clinical Establishment (Central Government) Rules which mandates the notification of a standard rate in consultation with states for the treatment and procedures of ailments in metros, cities and towns.
Centre shifted the burden on the state governments, claiming that it has written to the states repeatedly but got no response.
The SC has asked the Union health secretary to call a meeting of his state counterparts to ensure notification of a standard rate within a month, TOI reported.”If Union govt fails to find a solution, then we will consider petitioner’s plea for implementing CGHS-prescribed standardised rates,” SC warned.ALSO READ: Inflation hurting patients, but health of hospitals improves
The case
‘Veterans Forum for Transparency in Public Life,’ an NGO, represented by advocate Danish Zubair Khan, filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) asking the court to direct the Centre to determine the fee rates applicable to patients according to Rule 9 of the Clinical Establishment (Central Govt) Rules, 2012.
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Under the Rules, all hospitals and clinical establishments, to keep intact their registration, must “display rates charged for each type of service provided and facilities available for benefit of patients at a conspicuous place in vernacular as well as in English language; and charge rates for each type of procedures and services within range of rates determined and issued by Centre from time to time, in consultation with state govts.”
The petitioner informed a bench comprising Justices B R Gavai and Sandeep Mehta that the Central government promptly implemented standardized treatment rates for patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. The petitioner further suggested that in cases where states did not cooperate in framing a range of rates for various treatments, the Centre could use its authority under central laws to unilaterally declare fees for different medical procedures.
