Pvt ambulances fleecing covid-19 patients, Jalandhar admn fixes rates
The new charges for private ambulances applicable in the district are a minimum of Rs 1,000 for the first 15km, after this, every additional km will cost between Rs 10 and Rs 15 depending on the type of the ambulance
Jalandhar With reports of private ambulances fleecing covid-19 patients, or those suspected to be infected with the disease, for shifting them to hospitals or quarantine centres, deputy commissioner Ghanshyam Thori on Thursday constituted a five-member committee to stop the unethical practice. He has also fixed charges for private ambulances. The move assumes significance as many private hospitals are to begin treating patients from August 1.
The district has only 23 ambulances with an average of 50 persons testing positive a day for the past month. The number of cases has also trebled from 733 on July 1 to 2,165 cases on July 29. There have been 47 deaths due to covid-19 till July 29 with three deaths on Wednesday.
“Private ambulances have been charging Rs 3,000 and Rs 4,000 for shifting passengers from rural areas to Jalandhar city, a distance of between 10 and 30km only,” a doctor said on the request of anonymity.
The new charges for private ambulances applicable in the district are a minimum of Rs 1,000 for the first 15km. After that, for a Basic Life Support (BLS) ambulance of up to 2,000cc, an additional Rs 10 per km will be applicable. For a BLS ambulance above 2000cc, the additional charges will be Rs 12 per km. Finally, again for an Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS), it will be Rs 1,000 for the first 15km, and an additional Rs 15 per km for additional travel. The DC added, “The ambulance service providers or drivers will also be responsible for providing PPE kits to covid patients from the points of pick and drop. The rates will be applicable between these points. It is also mandatory for ambulance driver to maintain the complete logbook.”
The panel that has been formed to tighten the noose on private ambulances, which are making windfall gains by charging ‘exorbitantly’ for ferrying patients infected with covid-19 include Regional Transport Authority (RTA) secretary Barjinder Singh; assistant civil surgeon Dr Gurmeet Kaur Duggal and three others.
