The Chennai Corporation on Monday initiated action against a hospital that forced patients to give Aadhaar for getting admitted for treatment.
According to a post on social media on Monday, a hospital in ward 150 of Zone 11 (Valasaravakkam) had asked patients to give Aadhaar “compulsorily” for treatment.
The notice at the hospital read: “As per the direction of the Chennai Corporation, division 150, zone 11, all patients are requested to submit a copy of their Aadhaar card at the time of admission compulsorily. By the management.”
Responding to the complaints by patients, senior officials of the Corporation said the information given by the hospital to the patients was misleading. “The Corporation has not directed any hospital to get Aadhaar for admitting patients. We will take action against the hospital,” said the official.
At present, the Corporation gives requisition to more than 500 registered hospitals for various aspects relating to registration of birth and death and to monitor public health, compiling data relating to patients admitted.
More than 200 hospitals have also been failing to report details of patients undergoing treatment for infectious and notified diseases to the local health authorities of the Chennai Corporation, said officials.
The civic body has been issuing notice to hospitals under Sections 56 and 64 of the Tamil Nadu Public Health Act 1939 for failing to notify the details of such patients within 24 hours.
With dengue cases on the rise in the city, some of the hospitals seem to have been taking such initiative to get the address of patients to help the civic body trace them, sources said.
