THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Health Minister K K Shailaja said on Friday the much delayed Kerala Clinical Establishments (Registration and Regulation) Bill will be introduced in the next session itself.
Noting the Cabinet had approved the draft on Wednesday, she said the Bill could not be introduced in this session as it was cut short by more than a week
“The Bill is ready and we wanted to introduce this in the present session. However, the session has been cut short,’’ she told the Assembly while replying to a private members resolution regarding the need to rein in private hospitals and medical laboratories.
She also said the government had brought in the Bill for controlling private hospitals and laboratories exploiting people.
Drafted 10 years ago, successive governments had not taken any steps to convert it into a legislation. The delay in introducing the Bill was alleged to be purposeful with pressure coming in from many quarters.
The Bill gains significance in the wake of reports a majority of private labs were functioning without any proper accreditation or certification and that they had unqualified staff.