In a significant move, the Gujarat Health Department has debarred five hospitals under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) due to alleged malpractices such as unnecessary surgeries and misuses of the scheme.
The hospitals include Khyati Hospital at Ahmedabad, and have you heard they were accordingly cited, including for conducting surgeries to extract benefits from the scheme?
“We will not tolerate inhumane activities by hospitals and doctors exploiting this scheme for financial gain. Strict actions will continue against those found guilty,” an official spoke.
With allegations leveled against hospitals, the five under suspension have some serious things to answer: all of them were conjoined in the report that pointed the finger at unjustifiable practices to obtain benefits from the government scheme.
Following the investigation, the authorities, medical experts, and members of the State Anti-Fraud Unit found severe violations in the procedure.
Suspended hospitals include:
- Khyati Multispecialty Hospital (Ahmedabad)
- Nihit Babycare Children Hospital (Rajkot)
- Sunshine Global Hospital (Surat)
- Sunshine Global Hospital (Vadodara)
- The Shri Jivan Jyot Arogya Seva Sangh (Gir-Somnath)
People who are also Medicare accredited with these hospitals, including Dr. Prashant Vazirani, a cardiologist at Khyati Hospital, have been charged with misconduct, including performing unauthorized surgeries.
Khyati Hospital Scandal
After allegedly conducting unnecessary angiocardioplasties that led to two patient deaths, Khyati Hospital has been caught in the whirlwind of controversy. It has been accused of performing over 600 cardiology procedures under PMJAY in the last six months, amounting to ₹27.7 crore.
Some reports allege that the hospital misled several patients, many of whom had been transported from rural health camps to the hospitals with pretenses, into getting the various procedures they were not in any way required.
Government Action
Prompted by these reports, the Health Department of Gujarat moved quickly to curb the irregular practices. After consulting the report, Health Minister Rishikesh Patel called a high-level meeting, and thereafter, the hospitals and the implicated doctors were suspended. The government is also considering legal actions against the offenders to hold them accountable and safeguard the PMJAY.
Broader Implications
Because the PMJAY enables free treatment for the poorest of the poor, it is scrutinized in the circumstances of such incidents. To prevent such abuse in the future, experts recommend strengthening the monitoring mechanism and creating transparency in-hospital procedures.
This unfortunate incident is seen as a wake-up call to emphasize ethical practices in healthcare delivery.
