A doctor from Assam has called out private hospitals for overcharging patients with inflated medicine prices and unnecessary lab tests. Dr Priyam Bordoloi said that corporate hospital chains rely on “predatory” practices and become a “financial sinkhole” for patients.
Dr Bordoloi was responding to a post from X user Ankit Pandey who declared that private hospitals in India have become a “money making machine”.
Pandey said his friend’s grandmother, admitted to the ICU, was being given medicines worth ₹40,000 to 50,000 every day. This staggering cost did not even include hospital bills, room charges etc. Meanwhile, the woman’s family was not allowed to see her and was not given details of her treatment.
(Also read: American woman praises India’s healthcare, says US system makes patients ‘go into debt’)
Assam doctor reacts
Dr Bordoloi agreed with Pandey’s opinion on predatory pricing by private hospitals. He said that he had witnessed first-hand how medicine prices are inflated and patients are asked to undergo unnecessary tests so the hospital can make more money.
The Assam-based doctor cited a personal example. He said that a couple of years ago, he advised a “germaphobe” cousin to undergo treatment at a private hospital, thinking she might be more comfortable there.
{{/usCountry}}The Assam-based doctor cited a personal example. He said that a couple of years ago, he advised a “germaphobe” cousin to undergo treatment at a private hospital, thinking she might be more comfortable there.
{{/usCountry}}The said cousin was handed a ₹64,000 bill for three days of treatment.
“While certain costs like better nurse-to-patient ratios, better infrastructure are justifiable, the lack of transparency is predatory. I saw firsthand the inflated medicine prices, unnecessary vitamin panels, and a CT abdomen that wasn't clinically indicated,” Bordoloi wrote.
He noted how corporate hospital chains are becoming a “financial sinkhole” for patients.
“As a medicine doctor, I caught the overuse of antibiotics and redundant testing, but most families don’t have that luxury. Corporate hospitals are increasingly becoming a financial sinkhole!” wrote the doctor.
Internet weighs in
Social media users were largely in agreement with this take on private healthcare.
“MBA driven medicine is a big problem ! Optimizing a hospital isn’t the same as optimizing patient care, once revenue targets enter clinical space, priorities shift quietly which is happening on a large scale,” wrote Saurabh Shukla, a doctor.
“We have handed over our private hospitals to foreign PE firms. This is never going to turn back. India is a challenging market for every one, it is normal they will be predatory because they need to make profits as much as possible and as quickly as possible,” another said.
“When hospitals start listing on exchanges, profiteering, price gouging are inevitable. Very different dynamics,” an X user added.