LAHORE: Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Mian Saqib Nisar on Sunday said that hospitals should keep in line with the fees rate set by Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) for treatment and refrain from overcharging them beyond the limit.
He was hearing a case against private hospital owners for charging exorbitant fees from patients seeking medical treatments in which owners of private hospitals had been summoned.
During the hearing, it was revealed that owners of private hospitals bills are charging patients over Rs100,000 to implant stents in defiance of orders of billing within the limit set by PMDC.
Justice Nisar while scolding Doctors Hospital and Medical Center Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ghazanfar Ali Shah said that the latter should close his medical facility if he is not capable of serving the public.
He further asked the Doctors Hospital CEO how and why his administration overruled court orders regarding the matter.
“A patient who is admitted to the hospital for 30 days is handed a bill of Rs4 million,” the CJP said while adding that people had particularly complained about his hospital.
He said that people from low-income backgrounds should be considered while setting charges for medical treatment.
“The court will announce a verdict if private hospitals do not review their rates,” the chief justice informed.
Furthermore, Lahore Development Authority (LDA) director general who was also present during the proceedings complained against Doctors Hospital saying the facility was illegally constructed over a residential plot.
He added that the hospital was using one-canal of residential plot for commercial activities.