'Citizens want hospital charges standardized as per rating'

New Delhi, Aug 22 : A survey participated in by 30,000 people across the country found that the majority of them want private hospital charges to be standardised according to their rating.

After almost 15 years, the Union Cabinet has approved the new National Health Policy (NHP) 2017 which only covers government hospitals.

The biggest concern about healthcare services in the country for 42 per cent people is the quality. People don't trust the government healthcare system, according to the survey conducted by the citizen engagement platform LocalCircles.

An equal 42 per cent said that the rising costs in private hospitals was a concern for them.

For nine per cent of the participants, the availability of healthcare services and for seven per cent, the rising cost of drugs and medicines were major concerns.

When asked about their previous visits to a hospital, 85 per cent said they went to private hospitals as they did not trust government hospitals enough.

After the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority of India has fixed the pricing for essential drugs and implants like stents, knee caps and the like, citizens now demand that the surgery and procedure charges at private hospitals across India should also be standardized to a fixed price based on a hospital's star rating, to increase transparency and trust in healthcare services.

The poll saw 87 per cent citizens favour the move.