BMCRI hospitals in Bengaluru hike charges by 20-166 percent. From childbirth to preserving bodies, everything gets costlier: Minister Sharan Prakash Patil assures to review if costs are too high.
Published Nov 24, 2024 | 9:04 AM ⚊ Updated Nov 24, 2024 | 9:04 AM
Victoria Hospital.
The Karnataka government’s decision to hike medical care and diagnostic test fees at Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute (BMCRI)-run institutions has left people, especially the poor, worried.
Fees for services provided by these hospitals, from childbirth to forensics, have been hiked by up to 20 percent. Victoria, Minto, Vani Vilas, the Super Specialty Hospital and Trauma Care Centre in Bengaluru falls under the BMCRI, where the charges have been increased.
A BMCRI notification stated that the fee revision was made after a meeting with the representatives of the hospitals concerned and Minister for Medical Education Sharan Prakash Patil.
An official at Victoria Hospital told South First that the hike was “only 20 percent from the existing charges”. The rise in charges applies to all departments.
However, a close look at the hike revealed that certain charges had been increased by over 100 percent. For instance, the charge for a single-bed special ward was ₹750 a day. After the hike, it would cost ₹2,000. Patients in special wards would also incur a 40 percent additional charge for hospital procedures.
Hospital procedures for patients in deluxe wards would cost six percent more. Daily charges for the general ward have been raised to is now ₹50 from ₹15.
The cost of childbirth procedures at Vani Vilas Hospital has also increased. The fee for a normal delivery, which was previously ₹800, has now risen to ₹1,000.
Speaking to South First, a patient’s bystander said, “We were already spending over ₹3,000 for a delivery.” She recalled her first grandson’s birth, explaining, “The staff never let us leave the hospital without paying at least ₹2,000. They would ask, ‘Kushi ge enu ilwa?’ (suggesting tips for the childbirth).”
Lakshmamma’s pregnant daughter-in-law, Padma, is expecting a child. “Now, with the increased charges, I have no idea how much more we will have to pay,” she said.
If Padma undergoes a normal delivery she will have to shell out ₹1000, normal delivery with episiotomy will cost ₹1,080. Forceps delivery or vacuum extraction will cost ₹1320.
Since Padma has low blood pressure, she is also worried if it will be a Caesarean section which then would cost her ₹1,600, up ₹300 from the earlier ₹1,300.
The rise in charges for hospital services— 166 percent increase in single-bed special wards, 33 percent in twin-bed ward fees, 30 percent in procedure charges, 233 percent in general ward charges, and doubling of registration fees — reflects a troubling trend in public health accessibility.
These disproportionate increases create significant financial barriers for patients, particularly for low-income families who depend on government hospitals as their primary healthcare option.
While the government has been defending the hike as necessary adjustments, the steep increase may drive vulnerable populations away from timely medical care, further straining the healthcare system and widening inequities in access to essential services.
If a patient decides to occupy a special ward with twin occupancy the cost will come up to ₹1000 for the ward plus ₹500 for post-operative room charges, ₹1,500 for ICU step-down area, ₹100 as diet counselling charges (which was free earlier) and ₹50 extra for the diet (earlier free) plus an extra ₹300 for the copy of the extract of medical records (which was ₹250 earlier).
Also, an extra 30 percent will be charged for hospital procedures. For anaesthesia charges the patient will have to shell out ₹1,000.
Similarly, an additional 40 and 60 percent will be charged from patients in single and deluxe rooms, respectively, for hospital procedures.
For certificates, an overall increase of ₹50 has been implemented. This is applicable for post-mortem (₹250 to ₹300) medical (₹250 to ₹300) physical fitness (₹250 to ₹300), medical board (₹350 to ₹500) and wound (₹250 to ₹300) certificates.
The fee for child psychiatry certificates, too, has also been increased to ₹240 from ₹200.
Forensic and post-mortem services at BMCRI-attached hospitals will also cost more. These fee revisions are applicable for embalming and dead body freezer storage, both of which were previously free. Duplicate post-mortem reports, too, have been raised to ₹300 from the earlier ₹250.
Embalming, earlier done free of cost, will now cost ₹1,500. Freezer service, which was also free, will cost ₹1,500 a day in case of in-patients, and ₹2,000 daily for bodies brought from outside.
For families struggling with funeral costs, these increased rates at hospitals add an unexpected and significant burden, particularly in cases where post-mortem or storage services are legally or procedurally mandated.
For economically disadvantaged families, these charges can be crippling. Many depend on government hospitals since private facilities are unaffordable for them. With the introduction of fees for embalming and freezer storage, families may be forced to make difficult choices or resort to unregulated services.
Critics argued that introducing high fees for forensic services could lead to ethical and logistical challenges. For instance, legal processes often require post-mortem reports and embalming, leaving families with no choice but to pay the increased charges.
Furthermore, the steep increase in freezer storage fees could encourage unofficial practices or corruption, as families scramble for alternatives.
“This is not just a financial burden; it creates opportunities for exploitation,” a health activist warned. “Grieving families are the last group who should be subjected to these challenges.”
While the government defended the increases as routine adjustments, families and healthcare advocates argued that the costs are both unjust and unnecessary.
Medical Education Minister Patil assured that he will look into the rates and ensure that they are reduced if they have been increased exorbitantly.
“I was told the revisions were not done for many years and a minimum of 7 to 8 percent was being done. If the rates have been increased exorbitantly I will definitely look at it and revise them accordingly,” he told South First.
Interestingly, a proposal for hiking rates in all government hospitals has been pending with the health department. For now, the health department has agreed to a price rise only at KC General Hospital.
A health department source said the fee hike may soon be implemented in the remaining government hospitals.
Speaking to the media recently, Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao rubbished the claim made by HD Kumaraswamy that the price rise in government hospitals was linked to the state’s shortage of funds to keep the guarantees running.
(Edited by Majnu Babu)
