AURANGABAD: State health minister Rajesh Tope said on Saturday that no hospital should make the patients (or their relatives) either pay for or purchase PPE kits and masks, as the district collectors have been asked to provide the supplies to the hospitals.
Speaking to reporters in Aurangabad after a review meeting of the Covid-19 situation in the district that was attended by NCP chief Sharad Pawar and other officials, Tope warned of strict action against hospitals refusing admission to the patients or those charging bills beyond the ‘cap’ imposed by the state government.
He also reiterated that government auditors will audit bills from private hospitals and counter-sign them before patients are asked to pay the amount. He said the state health department would soon sign a memorandum of understanding with the Pune-based National Institute of Virology (NIV) to carry out titration of the donated plasma, so that plasma therapy can be effectively carried out on Covid-19 patients in the state.
Tope said that the tender for purchasing 500 ambulances in the state was in the final stage. In addition, he assured that funds from the Marathwada Statutory Development Board would be used to provide 60 ambulances to Aurangabad city.
The high-power review committee appreciated Aurangabad’s improved Covid-19 doubling rate, which has now risen to 26 days. Tope praised the civic body’s efforts to carry out about 1 lakh Covid-19 tests.
Addressing the issue of hiring required skilled manpower for the super-specialty set up at the Government Medical College and Hospital, Tope said the district collector has been given the authority to fill all the posts on the payscale as per National Health Mission, while in case of salary difference, the civic body has been asked to augment the difference.
An amount of over Rs 20 crore has been allotted to the district collectors for purchasing Remdevisir injections for the needy patients. Tope announced that soon an administrative approval for setting up a 500-bed women and child hospital in the city would be done