Leader of BJP legislature party Babulal Marandi on Thursday announced a campaign against private hospitals, accusing many of them of imposing arbitrary charges in violation of government announced rates for treatment of Covid patients and floated helplines for the public to send in complaints.

Marandi said that those who felt that they were charged unfairly could file their complaints either on WhatsApp (8674922223) or on email (yourbabulal@gmail.com) along with copies of medical bills as poof.

“Through media reports and social media platforms we are coming across unchecked preying by private hospitals across districts. While the state government has already fixed rates for treatment of Covid patients, many hospitals are openly violating it. Therefore, I am now committing myself to fight for all such people who faced fiscal harassment by such hospitals both on the streets and in the state Assembly. If required, I will also approach courts to ensure justice,” Marandi said.

Marandi said not all hospitals were fleecing patients, but there were many who were doing so. "In the name of increasing capacity, hospitals have set up beds at lobbies. Patients are put on saline drips or oxygen support but there is no one to attend to them. Due to such negligence, people have even died. However, their relatives are charged hefty fees under various heads. The state government and respective district administrations must launch a crack down on such practices,” he said.

The state has fixed rates for hospitals after classifying them into categories. Hospitals in Ranchi, East Singbhum, Dhanbad and Bokaro, which are accredited to National Accreditation Board for Hospitals & Healthcare Providers (NABH), are allowed to charge Rs 8,000 per day for oxygen supported beds, Rs 10,000 per day for non-ventilator ICU and Rs 12,000 per day for ventilator ICU.

Those that are not accredited with NABH are allowed to charge Rs 7,500 per day for oxygen-supported beds, Rs 9,000 per day for non-ventilator ICU and Rs 11,500 per day for ventilator ICU.

Similarly, NABH-accredited hospitals in Hazaribagh, Deoghar, Palamau, Seraikela-Kharsawan, Ramgarh and Giridih can charge Rs 7,500 (oxygen-supported bed), Rs 8,500 (non- ventilator ICU) and Rs 11,000 (ventilator ICU) per day. Those without NABH accreditation can only charge Rs 6,500, Rs 8,000 and Rs 10,500 per day for respective category of beds.

In all the other districts, the rates for NABH-accredited hospitals are Rs 6,000 (oxygen-supported beds), Rs 8,000 (non-ventilator ICU) and Rs 10,500 (ventilator ICU) per day while those without accreditation can charge Rs 5,000, 7,500 and 9,000 per day for respective category of beds.