Dr. Sonia Dalal, a Lung Specialist in Vadodara, has leveled significant charges against Sterling Hospital for overcharging their patients; the overpriced bills were against the Corporation guidelines especially, during the pandemic times.
Dr. Dalal claims that the hospital took money from patients under her name without providing any documentation. She protested to the Police Commissioner about the situation and sought a thorough investigation.
She stated, “I signed an MoU with the hospital in 2018 to serve as a full-time pulmonologist and received the remuneration as agreed.” In 2020, the hospital became a Covid center, and it was required to follow the VMSS guidelines set forth under the Indian Pandemic Act while charging patients. The Act enlists the expenses for both the inclusion and exclusion categories, including the visit of super-specialists, for which the hospital may charge an additional fee.
“They developed a Covid management team and informed me that I needed to visit every patient, which I couldn’t do. So I proposed he come with Dr. Ashish Bhosle and me, but the management refused to pay for him. We are in charge of the patients, yet we never receive the statements. One of my patients complained to me about the hospital charging them extra money under the names of Dr. Sonia Dalal and Dr. Abhinav Bhosle as Super Specialists. We both see 2865 patients and receive one crore 43 lakhs without a statement, with the hospital owing roughly 18 to 20 crores.” as stated by Dr. Dalal.
However, no statement has been given from Sterling hospital as we try to take their version.
She went on to say that she gave the hospital a notice in July and then went to the police commissioner for an inquiry. She also accused the hospital of billing for food and waste management services which aren’t mentioned in the agreed-upon plan.
Yogesh Patel, the former minister, and MLA, also raised the problem of the hospital charging exorbitant fees to patients during the pandemic, which claimed to be under investigation. He said a police probe is necessary for this situation and that he will personally speak with the police commissioner to look into it. He singled out Sterling Hospital for charging more money outside of the VMSS-approved package.
