PRINCE KUMAR
Ranchi, April 4: Recipients of the Center’s Ayushman Bharat – Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) – are suffering in Jharkhand every day. The empanelled private hospitals in the state are dismissing patients as they are not being paid their outstanding dues.
However, the department of health, medical education and family welfare professed to have dispensed Rs 70 crores as the installment to the empanelled medical clinics, and a significant number of them are declining to offer services referring to the absence of assets.
Since the scheme’s launch, over 9 lakh patients have availed the medical treatment across empanelled hospitals. Approximately, nearly 208 empanelled hospitals statewide have outstanding dues running into over Rs 200 crores over the past five months from insurance companies. Company representatives claimed that they could not pay up as the state government did not disburse its payable premium since September last year.
Ranchi’s premier super-speciality and private hospitals have dues to the tune of Rs 50 crores alone. Irma-based Medanta Hospital has dues of around Rs 4 crores while Medica and Rani Hospitals have dues of Rs 2 crores each. Ranchi Sadar Hospital and RIMS Ranchi collectively have dues to the tune of Rs 2 crores.
| Hospitals | Pending Bills (in Rs) |
| Medanta Hospital | 4 cr |
| Medica Hospital | 2 cr |
| Rani Children Hospital | 2 cr |
| Kanke General | 1.5 cr |
| Balpan Children Hospital | 1 cr |
Yogesh Gambhir, the president of the Private Hospital Association in Jharkhand, said, “We just want the government to restore the payment cycle which was completed within 15 days. If this does not happen, many of our member hospitals will be devoid of resources to continue the services.”
“Due to the non-payment of the outstanding dues, many hospitals have not paid the salaries of their doctors and staff. In such a case we will have to stop taking in the patients coming under the Ayushman Bharat scheme,” he said.
Yogesh also added that they will take up the issue with the state health minister for the payments.
Executive director of AB-PMJAY Ayushman Bharat in state Bhuvnesh Pratap Singh said that due to the change in the policy the payment was delayed. The tender agreement with national insurance had ended on September 23 last year.
Singh further said, “However, we got the permission for its extension till February 10 this year. We have released a payment of Rs 70 crore on March 15 to the insurance company which was selected in a fresh tendering process and have directed them to make payments at the earliest to the hospitals.”
“There are few hospitals in the state whose payment has been stopped as they have charged money in lieu of treatment from the patients though the treatment happened under the Ayushman Bharat scheme. We call and verify from the patients whether they have been charged by the hospitals or not,” he added.
The lagatar24.com correspondent spoke to several hospital representatives; they said that they haven’t received any payment.
“I have dues of over Rs 50 lakh and it is more than 10 months old. I haven’t received a penny from Ayushman Bharat,” said a hospital owner in Kathal More area of Ranchi.
