Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, May 19: Private dialysis centres across J&K are on the “verge of shutdown” due to “massive pending payments” under the Ayushman Bharat-Sehat Scheme, the Private Hospitals and Dialysis Centres Association (JKPHDA) said today.
Warning that thousands of kidney patients could lose access to life-saving treatment, the association alleged that the State Health Agency (SHA) has failed to clear dues worth hundreds of crores, with some payments pending since 2021, pushing dialysis centres into a severe financial crisis.
JKPHDA General Secretary Dr Masood-ul-Hassan said the prolonged delay in payments has pushed dialysis centres into a severe financial crisis, leaving them unable to procure essential consumables such as dialyzers, tubing sets and medicines.
“Dialysis is a life-saving service. A single missed session can be fatal for a kidney patient,” Dr Hassan said, adding that private dialysis centres cater to more than 70 per cent of Golden Card patients in J&K.
He said many centres are also struggling to pay salaries to doctors, technicians and nursing staff, while vendors have allegedly stopped supplies due to mounting unpaid bills.
The association blamed the “Trust Mode” implementation of the Ayushman Bharat scheme in J&K for the crisis, claiming it lacks accountability and fixed timelines for release of payments.
“Unlike Insurance Mode, there is no accountability or fixed timeline for payments. Vendors have stopped supplies due to unpaid bills, and trained staff are resigning. If funds are not released immediately, we will have no choice but to suspend services,” Dr Hassan said.
He claimed that several staff members have continued to work without salaries for months to ensure uninterrupted treatment for patients.
The association appealed to Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah for immediate intervention, warning that the collapse of dialysis centres could trigger a “humanitarian crisis” in the region.
JKPHDA demanded immediate release of all pending dues and a shift from Trust Mode to Insurance Mode for implementation of the scheme.
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