Panchkula hospitals to refund excess amount charged from COVID-19 patients

Monitoring panel was formed recently after complaints of overcharging.

Private hospitals in Haryana’s Panchkula district will refund an amount of ₹21.46 lakh ‘overcharged’ from COVID-19 patients for their treatment, even as they are in the process of refunding a similarly charged amount of ₹35.43 lakh. The latest amount of ₹21.46 lakh has been calculated after self-audit of bills by the hospitals from March 1 to April 30. A district-level committee was constituted by Haryana Speaker and local MLA Gian Chand Gupta to look into complaints of ‘overcharging’ by private hospitals during the second wave of COVID-19. Mr. Gupta said that on the recommendations of the committee an amount of ₹35.43 lakh in different cases that was ‘overcharged’ was already being returned by private hospitals. “Apart from this, an additional amount of ₹21.46 lakh calculated after self-audit of bills by private hospitals will be paid to the patients and their families,” he said.