Pharma Body Asks Fortis for Bills of ‘Overcharged’ Dengue Patient

Anil Vij said that strict action would be taken if the committee found the hospital guilty.

The family accused Fortis hospital of giving the seven-year-old child 500 injections in 15 days.

(Photo: Liju Joseph/The Quint)

National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority sent a notice to Gurugram’s Fortis Hospital over an alleged exorbitant bill in the a case of a seven-year-old girl suffering from dengue.

The seven-year-old died in September, after she was admitted with dengue to the Fortis Memorial Research Institute (FMRI), Gurugram, a multi super-speciality care hospital. The hospital billed her family almost Rs 16 lakh.

The authority has asked the hospital to provide copies of invoices, names of the medicines and other details to it by 8 December.

The Haryana government has set up a three-member committee to probe into allegations that the hospital overcharged the family of the seven-year-old who died of dengue, Health Minister Anil Vij said in Chandigarh on Wednesday.

The minister said the committee under the chairmanship of the Additional Director General (Health) will investigate the matter and submit its report at the earliest.

The team would gather information about medicines, treatment given to the girl, bills and reasons for her death. It will also ascertain if the girl was afflicted with dengue or not, the health minister said.

Vij said that strict action would be taken if the committee found the hospital guilty. He noted that free treatment is given to dengue patients in all the government hospitals in the state, but even private hospitals could not charge Rs 16 lakh for the treatment of the disease.

The minister said the government would not allow private hospitals to loot patients and necessary action would be taken in this regard.

Vij said he would speak to Union Health Minister JP Nadda for bringing a legislation under which no private hospital would be able to overcharge patients.

The hospital, however, refuted the charges, claiming that the patient's family was informed about the bill on a daily basis and that there was no medical negligence.

The Haryana government had on Tuesday ordered a probe into the allegations after the Centre had asked it to initiate an urgent inquiry into the case.

(With inputs from PTI, ANI)

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