District Collector Navjot Khosa on Sunday issued show-cause notice to a private hospital in Kattakada for withholding a dead body over the non-payment of COVID-19 treatment dues.
According to an official release, the hospital, Neyyar Medicity, had refused to release the body of a 46-year-old man who died of COVID-19 allegedly due to the inability of his family to pay the bill amount of ₹4,44,808.
Despite the intervention of the officials concerned, the hospital stood their ground.
The relatives of the deceased also raised allegations that they were not provided clarity regarding the expenses as well as the patient’s condition during treatment.
The show-cause notice required the hospital to furnish satisfactory explanation, the failure of which will lead to action being adopted under provisions of the Disaster Management Act.
Dr. Khosa warned stringent action against private hospitals that refuse to hand over bodies for failure or delay in settling bills. The district administration issued an order invoking Sections 26, 30 and 34 of the Disaster Management Act to prohibit such practices.
The order was issued close on the heels of District Medical Officer K.S. Shinu submitting a report regarding the issue that unfolded in Neyyar Medicity.
“Such actions are inhumane. Very often, the families of patients find it difficult to settle exorbitant bill amounts charged by private hospitals. The onus is on the hospitals to ensure relatives are provided adequate understanding of the patient’s condition as well as the expenses at each stage of treatment,” the Collector said.
