A day after the Health Department suspended the recognition of Be Well Hospitals in Kilpauk, Chennai, as a COVID-19 facility after it overcharged a patient, Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami has warned of strict action against private hospitals charging in excess.
In a tweet on Sunday, Mr. Palaniswami said that all private hospitals treating COVID-19 patients should display government-recognised treatment costs for the benefit of the people.
“Appropriate action will be taken if there are complaints that private hospitals are overcharging for the treatment of COVID-19 patients,” the Chief Minister said.
Recognition revoked
The Health Department on Saturday revoked the recognition of Be Well Hospitals in Kilpauk as a COVID-19 facility.
The department held an inspection and confirmed that the hospital had charged in excess for treatment.
It was found that Be Well Hospitals charged ₹12,20,000 for treating the patient for 19 days.
The patient’s treatment also did not include any special medications as per the protocols that were laid down by the State government.
The Tamil Nadu government had capped the cost of medical treatment for COVID-19 on June 6.
