The Haryana government has set up a three-member committee to probe allegations that Gurugram’s Fortis Hospital overcharged the family of a 7-year-old girl who died of dengue, Health Minister Anil Vij said here on Wednesday.
‘Strict action’
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, he said. Mr. 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 government hospitals in the State, but even private hospitals could not charge ₹16 lakh for the treatment of the disease.
Meanwhile, Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan said that the girl’s parents should approach a consumer court for adequate compensation.
“Consumer court is there for their protection. The parents should approach consumer court which will ensure that they get compensated,” the Consumer Affairs Minister told reporters.
Hospital denies charges
The case relates to the death in September of a 7-year-old girl who was admitted with dengue to the Fortis Memorial Research Institute (FMRI), Gurgaon, a multi super-speciality care hospital. The hospital had, however, refuted the charges claiming 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 asked it to initiate an urgent inquiry into the case.
