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Medicare goes pricey

Public hospitals start to realise increased service charges

Staff Correspondent
Government hospitals have started realising increased service charges, fixed by the health and family welfare ministry last month, putting an additional burden on poor patients.
Health and Family Welfare Minister AFM Ruhal Haque told The Daily Star yesterday, “ It is true that some service charges have been increased but the crucial ones remain unchanged."
The government raised charges for most medical services including admission fees, bed charges, and pathological and imaging test fees, according to a notification issued by the health ministry on September 10.
Charts with the names of services and their new rates were served to all medical college hospitals and also specialised hospitals in districts and upazilas across the country.
Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) authorities began charging patients as per the new charts yesterday.
Anupama Debi, mother of a patient at paediatric department of the DMCH, told The Daily Star yesterday, “I've come here to take my daughter home. I have been informed that the service charges had been increased and now I have to pay extra money for a few tests includ-inga chest X-ray done on my daughter."
“I've asked my family members at village to
SEE PAGE 5 COL 1 FROM PAGE 1 sell a cow. a source of our income, to pay the additional money.' she said, n. -;. y
Goyernment hospitals provide about 470 types of medical services under 23 categories and charges for most of them have been increased, said a ministry official wishing anonymity.
The services include X-ray (small plate) and X-ray (large plate), Barium meal (without medicine). Barium enema (without medicine). Barium swallow. Barium enema double contrast, intravenous-urogram (1VU/IVP), mylogram, syscogram, oral cholecystogram, radiotherapy (single), ECG single channel and free channel under X-ray and imaging categories.
At least Tk 30 to Tk 180 have been increased for X-ray of chest, legs, spine, cervical spine, abdomen, neck, foot, arm, hand, hip joint, knee
joint, elbow joint, wrist and dental x-ray.
According to the notification, the charges for mammography tests have been increased by Tk lOOtoTk 1000. Rate for Barium enema double contrast has been raised to Tk 800 from Tk 500, IVU/MCU/OCG to Tk 800 from Tk 500, Barium meal (S/D) to Tk 600 from Tk 500, Barium swallow toTk 500 from Tk 400 and Mylogram to Tk 1,500 from Tk 500.
Clinical pathology department at the DMCH now charges Tk 20 each for total count, differential count, erythrocyte sedimentation rate and haemoglobin test of blood, which was Tk 5.50. Besides, it now charges Tk 50 for a package of the four tests, which was Tk 22 earlier. Service charges for only 20 tests remain unchanged.
Ministry officials said some
modern medical equipment has been installed at government hospitals and there are allegations that operators and technicians charge patients extra money in absence of fixed rates for the tests.
Health Secretary Sheikh Altaf Ali declined to comment on the new service charges.
The health minister said poor people always get free treatment and the doctors are authorised to provide them with medical services for free.
He said poor people would continue to receive medical services free of charge at public hospitals.
In 2005, a circular was served to all government hospitals for increasing service charges for about 363 types of services under 22 categories. But it could not be implemented for "unavoidable circumstances," ministry sources said.