Supreme Court asked Private Hospitals to Provide Free Treatment to Poor

The Supreme Court on 1 September 2011 ordered Delhi’s private hospitals to provide free treatment to the poor. The court ruled that they cannot wriggle out of their responsibility.

A bench of justices RV Raveendrana and AK Patnaik gave the order. The bench asked the city hospitals to reserve 25 percent of their out-patient department capacity and 10 percent of beds at the indoor level for free treatment of the poor.

The court passed the order on a batch of petitions filed by ten private hospitals, which challenged a Delhi high court order to provide free treatment to the poor as per the land lease agreements between the government and them.

There are 37 hospitals in Delhi, which were granted land by the government at concessional rates. Out of them, 27 hospitals provide free treatment to poor patients.