Karnataka: Private Hospitals To Keep 50% Beds For COVID-19 Patients
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Karnataka, 19 July 2020 7:43 AM GMT | Updated 20 July 2020 4:10 AM GMT
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If any hospital is found not complying with the order and reports denial of admission to any COVID patient, they might face criminal charges under the Disaster Management Act.
Private hospitals in Bengaluru on Sunday confirmed that they will reserve 50% for COVID-19 patients, starting this week.
This development comes after their meeting with Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on Saturday, where he ordered the private hospitals to keep minimum 50% of beds, as the state struggles to cope with the surging number of cases and reported a shortage of beds available for the treatment.
Nodal officers have been appointed to monitor the availability of beds in the medical college hospitals.
If any hospital is found not complying with the order and reports denial of admission to any COVID patient, they might face criminal charges under the Disaster Management Act, the CM said while expressing concerns over the media reports on hospitals denying treatment and patients eventually succumbing to the virus as a result.
Speaking to the college representatives, the CM stressed that private medical colleges and hospitals need to cooperate to fight the pandemic. "Bengaluru should continue to lead the country as a role model in COVID management," NDTV quoted.
In the month of July, Bengaluru has seen many single-day hikes in coronavirus cases and seems to be losing its grip in containing the spread.
According to the media reports, medical colleges had earlier agreed to provide 4,500 beds, which in addition to the government hospitals would have taken the total number of available beds to 6,500, but provided around 300 beds till date.
Earlier this month, the state government had also issued notices and ordered the closure of the Out-Patient Department in Vikram hospital and Apollo private hospital for 48 hours, after the hospitals allegedly refused admission to patients and not providing the said amount of beds to the government. The government had warned the hospitals of serious consequences if they refuse to admit any patient or report overcharging for the treatment.
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