NEW DELHI: Trust but verify, that’s what the Delhi Assembly secretariat has attempted on its staff. But how, read on. In a peculiar order, the secretariat came out with an instruction on Thursday asking the staff to produce empty packets of medical supplies, including medicines strips, vials, bottles, and other consumables used in the treatment. Clearly, the authorities want proof before clearing the claims for
expenses. The staff will have to attach all the items with the medical bills generated during the course of their treatment, said the order accessed by this newspaper.
In case the treatment is underway, the empty packets of medical items will have to be provided as soon as they are utilized. The secretariat has also sought an undertaking whether the staff wants to avail of the reimbursement for their dependents (other than the spouse).
The circular says the move is aimed at “avoiding the probable misuse of medical reimbursements.”
The scheme includes claims for the staff and their dependents. Sometimes, such claims cover recompensing for expensive medicines.
In case the medicines are under-consumption at the time of submission of the claim for medical reimbursement, then the empty packing, strips, vials etc. shall be provided as soon as the same are consumed so as to ensure that the expensive medicines, injections, medical consumables were really
utilized by the patient, the circular says.
The secretariat staff are also told that high-value hospital bills beyond Rs 2 lakh will not be reimbursed if paid in cash. The circular has upset the officials who call it an additional burden of proof to an already tedious mechanism of verification.
“The move will deprive many claimants of the facility,” said an official. The officials also questioned the need for additional measures when the staff is already providing bills that can be verified. “If the delay in reimbursement wasn’t enough, we are now subjected to the additional pain in the name of scrutiny. What is the need to collect all empty packets of medicines, IV drips, bottles and needles when we produce the bills?” asked a senior staff member. Many senior officers said that the decision goes against the government’s own rules on biomedical waste.
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