NEW DELHI: Expressing “deep concern” that treatment in private hospitals is five to 10 times more expensive than in government hospitals, particularly for serious illnesses such as cancer, heart disease and kidney failure, a parliamentary panel has recommended that private hospitals rationalise room charges and keep them below the average tariffs charged by three-star hotels in the vicinity.
A department-related parliamentary standing committee on health and family welfare, headed by Prof. Ram Gopal Yadav, said the Committee was of the considered opinion that some private hospitals levy large charges for hospital stays, particularly in metropolitan cities.
The 31-member committee, which analysed the breakup of hospital billing structures, said “rationalising of room charges needs to be done on an emergent basis.”
“The Committee understands that hospital room charges are not uniform and vary across geographic regions and even among hospitals within the same area due to differences in infrastructure, service levels and operating costs,” the report titled 'Affordability and accessibility of healthcare facilities in public and private sector' said.
The committee recommended that hospital room charges should not exceed the average tariffs prevailing at three-star hotels in the peripheral area or vicinity of the hospital.
“The Committee recommends making this benchmark mandatory for all private hospitals in large metropolitan cities. The resident doctor cost, nursing cost, disposable costs of consumables, meal charges, laundry charges can be added to the basic room tariff so that the entire cost is rationalized,” the report added.
The committee said it “firmly believes that the current ecosystem often limits financial capping to acute interventions or surgical procedures, leaving patients highly vulnerable to unregulated out-of-pocket expenses during extended follow-ups, rehabilitation, or end-of-life care.”
It recommended the formulation and regulatory enforcement of 'Continuum of Care' packages.
These packages should bundle preventive screening, diagnostic, curative and palliative services under a single capped financial framework, ensuring economically disadvantaged patients are not forced to abandon care during critical palliative or supportive phases.
The committee found that the average cost of inpatient treatment for an illness in India was about Rs 37,858, while out-of-pocket expenditure was about Rs 34,064.
Quoting the 80th round of the National Sample Survey, the committee said the average cost of hospitalisation was Rs 6,631 in government hospitals, compared with Rs 50,508 in private hospitals.
The gap widens further for serious illnesses such as cancer, heart disease and kidney failure.
The committee also challenged the notion that only major treatments are expensive, saying the cost of treating common illnesses also varies sharply between public and private facilities.
For outpatient treatment over 15 days, the average cost of a single treatment was Rs 861. In government hospitals, it was Rs 289, while in private hospitals the cost rose to Rs 1,447.
Childbirth expenses illustrate the gap most starkly, the report said. While childbirth cost Rs 2,299 in government hospitals, the cost in private hospitals ranged from Rs 30,000 to Rs 40,000, a difference of roughly 10 to 15 times.
“The Committee believes that the heavy reliance on the private sector, which currently delivers nearly 60 per cent of hospitalisations and 70 per cent of outpatient services, creates an environment where unregulated costs for diagnostics, consumables, medicines, and intensive care persistently push vulnerable households into indebtedness,” it added.