The state government’s decision to appoint a special team to inspect bed reservations in charity hospitals may be seen as a stringent measure to oversee the implementation of the rules.
The Law and Judiciary Department in Mantralaya issued a circular on Tuesday to appoint a team comprising the Charity Commissioner or his nominee, the Principal Secretary of the Medical Education Department or his nominee, and the chief of the medical cell in Mantralaya for the charity hospitals or his nominee.
The circular has been issued after a review meeting chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in April.
The meeting decided that the charity commissioner should appoint an independent and dedicated officer for each division to conduct inspections of the Indigent Patients’ Fund (IPF). Instructions have also been given to ask the charity hospitals to implement the health schemes announced by the central and state governments.
Each hospital registered under the Charity Act should be asked to display a board visible to all where details of the beds available for the poor and weaker sections are available. It should also display information about the help desk, schemes implemented by the hospital and other information, which should also be available online and a dashboard.
Information about the charity hospitals that have taken land on lease from the central as well as the state government, and other benefits, should be submitted to the law and judiciary department.
Action should be taken against the hospitals that do not comply with the state directives, under the Maharashtra Public Trust Act 1950 and the directives given by the Bombay High Court in its decision on a PIL (3132/2004).
The Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC) should issue clear directives to the doctors attached to the charity hospitals that they should not avoid checkups and treatment for patients from the poor and weaker sections. All the charity hospitals should have a single IPF account, and all the accounts should be centralised by developing a mechanism that will facilitate control by the Charity Commissioner’s office.
The patients from the poor and the weaker sections should submit any one document, such as an income certificate issued by the Tehsildar, Ration Card or BPL Card, Pan Card (if available), to prove their eligibility.
