Private hospitals in Maharashtra must display rate cards in Marathi and English, health dept orders

Treatment costs at private hospitals are rising and billing lacks transparency. To spare patients and their relatives a financial burden, displaying a rate card of medical services and facilities where everyone can see it has now been made mandatory. The state health department has issued directions to this effect.

Hospitals, nursing homes and clinics will have to display the rate card in both Marathi and English. Strict action has been ordered against failing to display the rate card, charging more than the announced rates, or levying hidden charges.

The state health department has issued a circular on the matter in line with instructions from the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Under the Maharashtra Nursing Home Registration Rules 2021, displaying the rates of medical services and facilities is compulsory. The rule has been in force in the state since 2022. Even so, according to the Pune unit of the Indian Medical Association (IMA), only about 20 per cent of clinics and hospitals in the district follow it.

Dr Sanjay Patil, president of the Pune IMA, says that displaying rates is required under the 2021 rules and has been enforced in the state since 2022, but only about 20 per cent of clinics and hospitals in the district comply.

If patients and relatives know the price of a service before treatment begins, they can plan their finances. Knowing the likely cost will also let them compare options when choosing a hospital. Checking the charges on the rate card against the actual bill should help reduce disputes over overcharging or discrepancies in bills.

The directions call for action against practices such as charging more than the rate card states, levying hidden charges or not displaying a rate card at all. Institutions that break the rules may face penalties, and their licences may also be cancelled. However, how well the decision is implemented will depend on how effectively complaints are investigated, bills are verified and action is actually taken.

These rules are expected to be followed at 6,735 registered hospitals, pathology laboratories and healthcare institutions in Pune city and district. The administration will have to check whether these institutions have put up the rate card prominently, whether the rates on it are up to date, and whether actual bills charge according to those same rates.