Private labs at Punjab district hospitals; poor will be hit, warn docs
Vishav Bharti
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, July 14
Punjab has allowed a chain of private laboratories to operate from the premises of government district hospitals. These labs will be permitted to charge more than the government labs at these hospitals. A chain of labs based in Mumbai has invited applications for hiring radiologists, pathologists, nurses, lab technicians and marketing executives.
Sources claimed the government was to create diagnostic hubs at the district hospitals, but it shelved its plan to benefit private players. When contacted, Principal Secretary (Health and Family Welfare) Hussan Lal said while the government labs closed in the afternoon, private labs would function round the clock. “There were multiple players but the one which quoted the maximum discount was awarded the contract,” he explained. According to information gathered by The Tribune, the company which has been awarded the contract will offer a 48% discount to those covered under the CGHS.
Government doctors see it as another move to dismantle the public healthcare system. “This is a sinister design to deprive the poor of healthcare services. The government will eventually close down all government labs,” cautioned Dr Gagandeep Shergill, senior vice-president, Punjab Civil Medical Services Association.
