Patient's Complaints on Private Hospitals: The rising cost of treatment in private hospitals is raising concerns among patients. Many are raising questions about expensive tests, unclear bills, and insurance claims.

Why are medical bills higher in private hospitals?

India continues to progress day by day in every field, be it education or health. While healthcare facilities are constantly expanding in the country, the cost of treatment is also skyrocketing. The better the treatment, the more expensive the bill. While this problem is rare in government hospitals, the government also provides free treatment for many ailments; most people prefer to seek treatment in private hospitals over government hospitals.

They believe that the bigger the building or the more facilities available, the better the treatment will be. This belief isn't wrong, as every sick person wants to be treated in a good place and thoroughly. However, a recent survey revealed that a large number of people are raising questions about private hospital bills and treatment methods. People say that private hospitals often conduct more tests than necessary to charge more, and the bill doesn't clearly state what the patient is being tested for. Let's find out what the whole matter is.

There is a huge difference in the cost of government and private hospitals.

Government survey data also clearly shows that private hospitals cost many times more than government hospitals. According to the National Sample Survey, the average cost of treating the same illness in a government hospital is ₹6,631, while in a private hospital, this cost rises to ₹50,508. This means that even basic treatment is 5 to 10 times more expensive in private hospitals than in government hospitals. This is because they frighten patients and force them to undergo unnecessary tests to extract more money. However, if the illness is serious, the patient is further burdened. For serious diseases like cancer, heart disease, and kidney disease, private hospital bills can reach lakhs of rupees, making it difficult for the common man and the middle class to afford treatment.

Why are people angry, what is the problem with the bill?

The matter is not limited to this, the biggest complaint of the people is that among the medicines they get after treatment, there are many medicines which are not actually needed. Also, the information is not given clearly in the bill; only those things are written that the hospital wants to give to the patient, due to which the family of the patient is unable to understand why so much money is being demanded. At least 68% of the people in India have raised questions about private hospitals and said that many times, despite having insurance, the hospitals do not allow the full claim to be approved, and the patient has to pay a lot of money from their own pocket.