BENGALURU: Twenty-six hospitals out of 185 private tertiary care hospitals in the State were served notices by Suvarna Arogya Suraksha Trust (SAST) of the State Health Department on Friday. The hospitals had reportedly suspended services under three government medical insurance schemes, including one for below poverty line patients. Seven hospitals have resumed services, SAST confirmed.
Though hospitals fear that the suspension might affect patients seeking treatment under the scheme, SAST officials say that measures are in place to divert patients to nearby hospitals.
Suvarna Arogya Suraksha Trust (SAST) is a separate body under the health department set up in 2009. It implements Vajpayee Arogyashree health Assurance Scheme to BPL families, Rajiv Arogyabhagya for APL families and Jyothi Sanjeevani for State government employees and their families.
The notice read, “In support of the Federation of Healthcare Associations, your hospital has started denying services to scheme beneficiaries of SAST. Your hospital’s MoU with SAST is valid up to 31 March 2017 and as per MoU, the SAST empanelled hospitals are not supposed to stop the services. Your hospital is being suspended from SAST schemes with immediate effect.” The notice also required the hospital authorities to be replying to it by January 23.
A city-based cancer hospital had replied to SAST saying, “As you have suspended us with immediate effect since 21 January, hospitals who were accepting new patients under life-threatening situations-- under three deferred schemes can no longer serve them. Two schemes for accident victims and children, which were earlier unaffected, also cannot be served now because of suspension. As for people who are in the midway of their treatment, for example, patients with chemotherapy, we cannot continue to treat any of these beneficiaries owing to your suspension order.”
SAST director of medical management Dr Sudha Chandrashekar told Express, “It was only 26 hospitals that had suspended the services. Seven have resumed services, others have asked for more time. Even if a hospital is suspended or delisted in the future, all pre-authorised procedures prior to suspension notice will be paid for.”
SAST executive director Rathan Kelkar said, “The hospitals have provided different replies. We are going through each of them. Our understanding with these hospitals is that even if they are suspended or delisted, those procedures which have pre-authorisation should be completed. Also, our Arogyamitras who had been asked to divert scheme patients to nearest government hospital have not reported any adverse event so far.”
Dr Ajai Kumar, chairman, Healthcare Global Hospital said, “On the one hand we have been called for a consultative meeting for revising the package costs and on the other hand we have been sent suspension notices. If the government does not want the services of the private sector, it is fine by us, but it should make up its mind.”