Mangaluru: Government Medical College demanded by the DYFI

Mangaluru: A demand for a Government Medical College in Mangaluru has been raised by the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) Dakshina Kannada District Committee in the face of exorbitant fee being charged by private medical hospitals.

A memorandum has been submitted by the DYFI delegation led by District Secretary, Santhosh Bajal, to the Deputy Commissioner, K G Jagadeesha, on Monday. The memorandum asks for supervision of private hospitals, as they charge exorbitantly for medical treatments and clinical tests.

"Private Hospitals and doctors in Dakshina Kannada district charge exorbitantly from patients. There are complaints that patients are made to undergo unnecessary clinical tests. Private hospitals do not display rates of various treatments and tests. Dead bodies are not released if relatives fail to pay the hospital bills," he alleged.

Santosh accused private hospitals for not following any guidelines for fixing of rates related to treatments and tests; and pressed for the enforcement of a uniform chart rate.

"The district administration should intervene and take initiatives to frame guidelines for fixing rates of treatments and tests in private hospitals," he urged. He also questioned the functioning of government health centers in the district and said they were not up to the mark.

"The number of public health centers and community hospitals in the district do not match the requirement while considering the population. Further, 45% of the sanctioned posts in government hospitals in the district remain vacant. The district administration should take necessary steps to fill the vacancies," he urged.