Mounting Aarogyasri dues leave pvt hospitals in Telangana under financial crisis

These delayed payments are prompting several hospitals to consider de-empaneling themselves from the scheme. Additionally, the Employee Health Services (EHS) dues are also reported to be overdue.
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HYDERABAD: Many private hospitals empanelled in the Aarogyasri Healthcare Scheme are facing severe financial difficulties due to outstanding reimbursements from the government, some of which have been pending for over a year.

These delayed payments are prompting several hospitals to consider de-empaneling themselves from the scheme. Additionally, the Employee Health Services (EHS) dues are also reported to be overdue.

According to the official website of the Aarogyasri HealthCare Trust, there are 327 corporate hospitals empaneled, with 54 located in Hyderabad. However, many hospitals are withdrawing from the scheme due to financial strain.

One recognised multispecialty hospital, still listed on the Rajiv Aarogyasri Healthcare Trust website, told TNIE that it ceased to provide healthcare services under Arogyasri and refused to disclose the reasons.

The Telangana Aarogyasri Network Hospitals Association (TANHA) said that dues have been outstanding for over a year. They submitted a representation to the health minister in April, who assured them that all dues would be cleared soon.

Vaddiraju Rakesh, president of TANHA, told TNIE, “Private hospitals are willing to extend the Aarogyasri services to beneficiaries, but it should not jeopardise their financial viability. For the past decade, we have been urging the government to revise package rates by 7% to account for inflation, as the current rates make it challenging to provide services. We also seek the release of old dues, a redraft of the MoU, and adjustments to miscellaneous deductions and cancellations.”

As outlined in the Aarogyasri MoU, reimbursements are supposed to be processed within 40 days of treatment, but this has not been adhered to, leading to significant delays, Rakesh added.

Notably, in August, the government announced an extension of Aarogyasri insurance coverage from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 10 lakh, along with the addition of 163 new procedures, bringing the total to 1835 under the health scheme.

“If the government plans to implement changes to the scheme, it must communicate with service providers about its intentions and how to effectively implement the proposals. Network hospitals were not invited for any discussions, and we currently lack clarity on the new procedures and enhanced packages. Given the challenging circumstances we are facing, how can we accommodate these changes?” Rakesh added.

Aarogyasri officials denied these claims, stating that dues have been paid monthly since the new government took office.

RV Karnan, director of the Aarogyasri Healthcare Trust, told TNIE, “The trust is prioritising payments, clearing dues first for dialysis centres, NIMS, private hospitals, and lastly government hospitals. Payments have been cleared up to July, with the remaining dues in process. Since March, up to ₹50 lakh has been paid to private hospitals on a first-in-first-out basis. As for the 163 new procedures, we are initially implementing them in government hospitals and NIMS to bolster government health facilities, with plans to extend these to private hospitals later.”

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