The Hindu Business Line : AP pvt hospitals seek single-window system

WITH Dr Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, a medical practitioner, taking over as Chief Minister, doctors in the State are hopeful of getting the problems confronting private hospitals and nursing homes remedied.

The Andhra Pradesh Private Hospitals and Nursing Homes Association (APNA) has asked the Government to set up a single-window system to take care of all Acts and laws concerning private hospitals.

"There should be a mechanism to let us pay all our taxes at one place," said Dr Y. Ravinder Rao, General Secretary of APNA.

Speaking to newspersons on Monday, he said that it was taxing for hospital administrators to run from one place to another to pay taxes and licence fee.

APNA has also called for early and effective implementation of the AP Nursing Homes and Clinical Establishment Act.

"The Bill was passed by the Assembly a couple of years back. But the Act is yet to see the light of the day thanks to the absence of specific rules that would govern it," said Dr Rao.

The Act, if implemented, would not only regulate establishment of private hospitals but also help the specific body to monitor the day-to-day functioning of hospitals.

The association, which has a Statewide membership of 5,000, is going to submit a memorandum to the Chief Minister soon.

Dr Rao also said that APNA members, who include nursing homes, corporate hospitals, diagnostics and medical colleges, catered to 70 per cent of the State's medical needs.

Expressing concern over the growing attack on nursing homes and medical practitioners, he wanted the Chief Minister to direct the Home Department not to arrest doctors unless they got prima-facie evidence in cases of negligence.

Dr G. Bala Reddy, President of APNA, said that doctors setting up hospitals and clinics in rural and tribal areas should be given subsidy.

He also wanted a medical expert to be included on consumer panels whenever they dealt with medical cases.

The association wants health to be considered part of the service sector and a separate category created while deciding power tariff for hospitals.

More Stories on : Medical Institutions & Hospitals | Andhra Pradesh

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