NEW DELHI, Dec 10: In an attempt to regulate healthcare services in India, the Centre is pushing for adoption of the Clinical Establishment Act by State Governments to curb malpractices in private hospitals after two glaring instances of alleged profiteering and medical negligence grabbed headlines recently.
Chief Ministers of all states have been asked by the Centre to adopt and implement the Clinical Establishment (Registration and Regulation) Act, 2010 to curb malpractices in private health sector.
The move comes in the wake of the decision of the Delhi Government to cancel the licence of a Max Hospital branch for alleged medical negligence.
To curb profiteering, all health centres will perforce have to display the facilities provided along with the rates which should be clearly visible in different languages, including English and Hindi.
The move comes after the Delhi Government cancelled the licence of Max Hospital, Shalimar Bagh, for alleged medical negligence in the twins case where one of the babies was declared dead by the doctors and reported overcharging by Fortis Hospital in Gurugram recently.
While affordable healthcare is the key driver of the Act, it also seeks to set price ceilings and impose punitive measures to those failing to deliver. Under the Act, doctors or healthcare facilities may face criminal proceedings under Indian Penal Code, including cancellation of their medical license, if found guilty of medical negligence. However, Indian Medical Association (IMA) apprehends that this clause can result in harassment of doctors.
The Act prescribes minimum standards of facilities and services provided by clinical establishments, puts curbs on them from indulging in unethical practices and ensures that duties towards the patients are diligently discharged.
The wide discrepancy in healthcare facilities available to the hapless patient has left them feeling cheated and robbed besides compromising on patient safety.
According to the Health Minister JP Nadda, the Act is ”a model code of clinical establishment” that state governments can adopt.
The Act will ensure delivery of minimum standard of services by clinical establishments, excluding those run by armed forces, across the country.
The Act has already come into effect in Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Assam, Mizoram, Sikkim and all union territories except the National Capital Region of Delhi since March 1, 2012.
The West Bengal Government has also introduced and passed its own legislation called the West Bengal Clinical Establishments (Registration, Regulation and Transparency) Act, 2017. States such as Sikkim, Mizoram, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand have adopted the Act but are yet to implement it. The minister also favours a regulatory authority and regulation system to go into cases regarding services being provided by private facilities so that such glaring lapses are not repeated. (UNI)
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