Rs 3.5-cr fine in a year on erring hospitals under Ayushman

Aditi Tandon

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, October 1

At the end of the first year of Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojana, the government has slapped penalties worth Rs 3.5 crore on defaulting hospitals for breaking rules of the plan that provides Rs 5 lakh annual hospitalisation cover to 10 crore poor eligible families.

An analysis by Ayushman Bharat Mission that monitors the scheme reveals that hospitals in Uttarakhand were top defaulters with the Centre recovering Rs 2.15 crore from 15 hospitals in the state. Maharashtra followed on default with 63 hospitals made to cough up Rs 53 lakh as penalty under PMJAY for cheating beneficiaries of the scheme.

Jharkhand was third on the list with 29 hospitals, paying Rs 21 lakh fine, followed by J&K where a recovery of Rs 19.31 lakh was made from the defrauding hospitals. Gujarat followed with 55 hospitals paying Rs 12.63 lakh fines. The other states in the penalty list were — Haryana where two hospitals had to pay Rs 9.8 lakh penalty; Chhattisgarh where 76 hospitals were slapped Rs 4.13 lakh penalty and Uttar Pradesh with 30 hospitals paying Rs 2.7 lakh.

The data was shared at the closed-door session held to brainstorm on the challenges before the Ayushman Bharat.

The defaulters 

• Rs 2.15 cr recovered from 15 Uttarakhand hospitals  
• Rs 53 lakh penalty 63 M’rashtra hospitals paid 
• Rs 21 lakh Jharkhand paid with 29 hospitals on list
• Rs 19.31 lakh fine Jammu and Kashmir paid 
• Gujarat followed with 55 hospitals paying Rs 12.63 L