Union Minister visits COVID-19 hospital in Hyderabad; Assures support from Centre

Hyderabad, July 12 () Raising concern over complaints of overcharging by private hospitals for treatment of COVID-19 patients in Telangana, Union Minister G Kishan Reddy on Sunday said the state government should initiate necessary action. He stressed the need for effective monitoring of such facilities by the government as lack of supervision was leading to fleecing of patients.

"I received complaints that private hospitals are charging exorbitantly from coronavirus patients to the tune of lakhs of rupees...," the Union Minister of State for Home said at a Virtual Press Conference.

He pointed out that it was the responsibility of the state government to boost public trust in government-run hospitals while regulating private hospitals.

"I request the Telangana government to take steps to restore confidence of people in government-run hospitals. The Centre is ready to extend any help required by the state," Reddy said.

He suggested that elected representatives who tested positive for COVID-19, should take treatment at government hospitals.

Advising the state government to expedite the process of "tracing, testing and treating," he said strict measures have to be adopted to curb the spread of the virus in the state.

He claimed that the mortality rate across the country was less due to the effective measures taken by the central government. Reacting to allegations of low COVID-19 tests conducted by the Chandrasekhar Rao-led government, Reddy said compared to other states, the number of tests carried out in Telangana were less.

According to the Union Minister, the Centre has provided 600 ventilators to Telangana while over 250 ventilators in state-run Gandhi Hospital are vacant. The government should contemplate why the public was apprehensive about getting treatment for COVID-19 at Gandhi Hospital even as over 250 ventilators were vacant there, he said.

Earlier in the day, Kishan Reddy visited the designated COVID-19 Gandhi Hospital here and took stock of the ground situation, assuring doctors andothers of the Centre's support in the fight against the pandemic.

The Union Minister interacted with doctors, paramedical staff and patients and enquired about the facilities being provided and measures being taken to handle the pandemic besides inspecting the hygiene conditions, an official release said.

He inspected the premises for hygiene and asked the hospital administration to give utmost importance to cleanliness.

He appreciated the efforts of doctors and other healthcare personnel of the hospital, which also functions as a COVID care centre, and "expressed gratitude for their godly service boosting their morale," it said. Reddy, who represents Secunderabad constituency here in Lok Sabha, assured the patients and the doctors of all possible support from the Central government, it added.

As on Saturday, Telangana's COVID-19 tally stood at 33,402 with 348 deaths. VVK VS