Need to hike rates for Covid beds: IMA to Maharashtra government

Sumitra Debroy & Bhavika Jain / TNN / Updated: Aug 14, 2020, 05:40 IST

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Citing revenue losses, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) has approached the state government to reconsider the capped rates for Covid and non-Covid treatment that were fixed in May.

Need to hike rates for Covid beds: IMA to Maharashtra government

Medics in protective gear check temperatures of Dharavi residents

MUMBAI: Citing revenue losses, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) has approached the state government to reconsider the capped rates for Covid and non-Covid treatment that were fixed in May. It has urged the state to increase bed charges by at least 50%, and regulate rates for PPEs, masks and bio-medical waste services.
IMA members who had a meeting with public health minister Rajesh Tope on Tuesday said they have sought revision of bed rates before a fresh circular of the extension is issued.

Under the ceiling, Covid patients can't be charged over Rs 9,000 a day for an ICU bed with ventilator, Rs 7,500 for ICU bed without it and Rs 4,000 for isolation in a routine ward. IMA wants these increased by at least 50%.

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Capping of treatment charges needs to be reviewed depending on location and category. The ‘one size fits all’ policy makes little sense if one is comparing hospitalisation cost in Mumbai with Ambejogai. Operational cost in terms of land, labour, maintenance, would be higher in bigger cities. If the facility is a small nursing home with little or no support from government, it must recover its cost to survive. However, the ones that enjoy concessions on tax and rent must be willing to keep their end of the bargain, that is providing affordable care in the time of a pandemic.

IMA: Rates have not kept pace with times and costs

The state on May 21 issued a circular, assuming control of 80% beds in the private sector and capping bed charges and treatment cost of over 270 non-Covid procedures that patients admitted in this category could be charged. Hospitals could decide charges for the other 20% beds under the scheme, now referred to as 80:20. It was to be valid till August 31 which the state plans to extend till November.
“Rates for Covid management and some non-Covid procedures are not feasible. They were based on charges of General Insurance Public Sector Association (GIPSA) which are impractical for many. Also, the rates are at least four years old,” said Dr Avinash Bhondwe, president of IMA, Maharashtra. “The state has to consider that cost of biomedical waste disposal for a small- or mid-size hospital is up from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 3 lakh due to the pandemic. Salaries and costs of electricity, phone and other essentials have tripled in the last four months,” he said. A senior official said that the state will extend the scheme, but may revise some features to make it more acceptable to private hospitals as the situation is different from what it was in May. “The state still needs the capacity, but we may have to look at some issues raised by the IMA before finalising the new notification,” said an official.
A state official claimed that hospitals didn’t incur losses because of the scheme but due to people’s fear of visiting hospitals. “They should advertise the scheme and lowered rates to increase footfalls. In areas where Covid is on a decline, people are coming for non-Covid treatment,” he said.

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