Bengal government imposes restrictions on doctors

Kolkata, Nov 29 (IANS) The West Bengal government has decided to take impose stricter restrictions against doctors with registration numbers from other states.

The first restriction against such doctors is that cannot treat patients covered under the Swasthya Sathi, the state's health insurance scheme, unless they get their names enrolled with the West Bengal Medical Council.

Hospitals across West Bengal have been alerted by the state health department not to assign any such doctors.

At the same time, sources from the department, said that it is mandatory for these doctors to get enrolled with the West Bengal Medical Council within six months from the time they start practicing in the state.

Apart from that, the sources also said that all medical practitioners practicing in West Bengal, will have to empanel their names with the Swasthya Sathi portal by providing their PAN and Aadhar details.

“This will help the state government to identify those doctors with registration numbers from other states who are practicing here without getting enrolled with the state medical council,” a department official said.

He added that the decision on this count was taken after complications arose over bills of certain patients covered under the Swasthya Sathi scheme, where the prescriptions attached were from doctors with registration number from other states but without any enrolment with the Medical Council.

“Often the tracking of the details of such doctors becomes difficult and hence it was decided to impose restrictions on them."