The Maharashtra government on Tuesday revised the rates for private hospitals for COVID-19 treatment by dividing the urban and rural areas in to three categories.
As per the State government notification, category A would include Mumbai, Mumbai Metropolitan Region (excluding Bhiwandi and Vasai-Virar), Pune and Nagpur (Nagpur municipal corporation, Digdoh and Wadi). Category B includes Nasik, Auranagabd, Amaravati, Bhiwandi, Vasai-Virar, Kolhapur, Solapur, Malegaon, Nanded and Sangli. Rest of the state is part of category C.
The time limit of the earlier notification of fixing hospital bed rates ended on May 31. The new notification has been issued with revised rates by categorising different areas of the State. As per this, private hospitals have to follow government rates on 80% beds used for COVID-19 patients while on the rest, it can charge rates fixed by the hospital.
The State has fixed the maximum charges that can be applied on COVID-19 patients by private hospitals in these three categories. For regular isolation, hospitals in category A can charge ₹4,000 per day while those in Category B and C can charge ₹3,000 and ₹2,400 respectively. This includes medical supervision, nursing, tests, medicines, meals and bed charges. Rates of COVID-19 tests have already been fixed while medicines required for bigger treatment have been excluded from this.
Isolation in Intensive care Unit (ICU) with ventilator would charge ₹9,000 per day in hospitals in category A areas while those in category B and C would charge ₹6,700 and ₹5,400 per day. In case ventilators are not being used, hospitals in category A can charge maximum of ₹7,500 per day while those in category B and C can charge maximum of ₹5,500 and ₹4,500 per day respectively.
Maharashtra’s Public Health Minister Rajesh Tope said that he had received a number of applications seeking revision of hospital rates. “We decided to categorise regions in the State to fix maximum price and the proposal was then sent to Chief Minister,” he said.
Earlier, the rates in urban areas and those in rural parts were identical. “This will help patients in rural parts. We categorise as per the prevalent practice in insurance companies and other private companies who offer various allowances based on areas,” he added.
