Will clear dues to private hospitals by March 21, Punjab tells HC
The state of Punjab has informed the Punjab and Haryana High Court that it will settle all outstanding payments owed to private hospitals up to December 31, 2024, by March 21.
The commitment was made before Justice Kuldeep Tiwari’s Bench during the hearing of a petition filed by the Indian Medical Association (IMA) Punjab and other petitioner-hospitals/medical institutions registered under the Ayushman Bharat Scheme.
The petitioners had sought the release of pending dues amounting to over Rs 500 crore.
As the petition filed against the state and other respondents through senior counsel DS Patwalia and advocate Adityajit Singh Chadha came up for a resumed hearing, the state counsel gave the undertaking on instructions from the Principle Secretary, Finance. He, at the same time, sought liberty to “further raise the claim regarding contribution to the Central Government as per the scheme”.
In view of the specific stand taken by the state counsel, the counsel for the petitioners submitted that they at the current stage did not want to press the petition. They, too, sought liberty to revive the petition in case the undertaking was not been adhered to by Punjab.
Taking up the matter in September last year, Justice Vinod S Bhardwaj of the high court had observed that the liability to pay had been acknowledged, but only about Rs 26 crore had been released. The court had also called for details of expenses incurred on advertising in print and audio-visual media, renovating houses and offices of ministers, MLAs and Class I officers, and the purchase of new vehicles. The Principal Secretary, Finance, was directed to file an affidavit detailing expenses incurred under specific heads.
Justice Bhardwaj had noted Additional Solicitor-General Satya Pal Jain's contention that the Centre was to reimburse 60 per cent of the medical bills and had already released Rs 355.48 crore to the state government. The responsibility to disburse the funds, along with their own dues, rested with the state health agencies. “The state has not only not released its own share but also misutilised the share already released by the Union of India,” Jain had added.
“What is surprising is that even though more than Rs 350 crore has been claimed to be released by the Union of India, the amount received by the state of Punjab/state health agency from the Union of India has not been disbursed and they have unlawfully retained the amount,” Justice Bhardwaj had asserted.
