E-Paper
Pune civic body audit reveals 36 hospital bills were inflated
The civic body has appointed auditors to verify bills issued to Covid-19 patients admitted at various private hospitals in the city. The audit is being done from August 14
An audit carried out by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) of private hospital bills related to Covid-19 patients found that out of the 49 bills scrutinised 36 were inflated.
As of Tuesday, the progressive positives of the city are 81,674 and death toll is 2,131, according to the state health department.
According to the civic administration, as of Tuesday, the number of active cases went up to 14,469 out of which 760 are in critical condition with 463 on ventilator while 297 in ICU without ventilator. Also, 2,472 are undergoing oxygen treatment.
The civic body has appointed auditors to verify bills issued to Covid-19 patients admitted at various private hospitals in the city. The audit is being done from August 14.
Vikram Kumar, Pune municipal commissioner, said, “As instructed by state government and district administration, we appointed auditors to verify bills issued by private hospitals to Covid-19 patients. The drive had started from August 14 and will continue. During the audit, 49 bills were scrutinised and 36 were found to be inflated. We corrected the bills and reduced amount to Rs 19 lakh,” he said.
Elected members from the city have raised the issue of overcharging Covid-19 patients at various private hospitals in the city. At a PMC general body meeting, Pune mayor Murlidhar Mohol instructed the administration that they should make the auditors’ names public to help residents verify their bills.
Mohol said, “Many complaints related to overcharging are reported. PMC should verify all bills above Rs1.5 lakh and the state government has also instructed us to do so. I have instructed the municipal administration to check bills issued by private hospitals with the help of auditors. Hospitals should not issue bills directly to patients, instead it should get scrutinised by the municipal administration.”
“Also, there is a need to check whether hospitals give 80 per cent beds to PMC,” he said.
MLAs and MPs have raised the issue at a meeting held by chief minister Uddhav Thackeray in Pune. They also asked Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leaders Sharad Pawar and Ajit Pawar to look into the matter.
Recently, guardian minister Ajit Pawar had instructed the administration to take action against hospitals who overcharge patients.
Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, Congress and Shiv Sena members raised the issue of overcharging at the PMC general body meeting held on August 18.
Arvind Shinde, Congress leader, said, “We are raising the issue for the last three months, but the administration is doing nothing.”
MNS leader Vasant More, said, “Hospitals and medical shops attached to hospitals are overcharging patients.”